


Tempest Strikes

by wttboz



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015), supercorp - Fandom
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-24
Updated: 2020-04-11
Packaged: 2021-01-02 05:41:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 25,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21156530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wttboz/pseuds/wttboz
Summary: This takes place outside the series, Kara and Lena met the same way, but from there the story twist away from the series.  Lena has built a suit of armor to help her protect Kara.  By the way, Lena has already figured out that Kara is Supergirl.





	1. Friendship

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place outside the series, Kara and Lena met the same way, but from there the story twist away from the series. Lena has built a suit of armor to help her protect Kara. By the way, Lena has already figured out that Kara is Supergirl.

Friendship

Kara was on patrol, it had been a slow night and she was ready to end her patrol and head back to her apartment, one last flight past L Corp to check on Lena and then she could finally get some sleep. The lights were on at L Corp but no Lena, that wasn’t like her. She listened for Lena’s heartbeat, ahhhh, there it was, she was in the lab downstairs. Kara was tempted to to peek in, but decided she shouldn’t intrude on Lena’s privacy.

The alert went off near her balcony, Supergirl, Kara, was back and checking on her. Lena smiled to herself, if only Kara could bring herself to tell me her secret. She had to be patient though, Kara would tell her in her own time. In the meantime she would do anything to protect her friend. She knew Kara wouldn’t peek in on her, because Kara was her friend, and maybe, just maybe something more. Her project was almost complete and then she could go live. She plucked a potsticker off her plate, and popped in her mouth, then back to work.

The Next Morning

“Hey Jess, is Lena in?”

“Hey Kara, what do you think? I’m not sure she left last night.”

“Did she eat?”

“I found a receipt from Noonan’s on my desk this morning, so I am going to assume yes.”

“Well here is a Cappuccino for you, and two cinnamon rolls.”

“Thank you so much Kara, you know you can go in at any time right.”

“Yep, but you take care of her, so I take care of you.”

“Kara, it’s been six months since you met Lena, when are you going to ask her out?”

“When I’m ready Jess, I have to ask her at my own pace.”

“You have more than that to tell her, don’t you Kara.”

“Jess, what are you talking about?”

“Kara, I know about your other life, I know you are Supergirl.”

“Pffffttt, why do you think that?”

“I don’t think it, I know it.”

“What?”

“Kara, I am not an idiot, I figured it out months ago. The disappearing and then Supergirl would show up somewhere almost immediately. I tracked it, every disappearance led to a crime being stopped, or a fire put out, something only Supergirl could do. So please, treat me like I have sense, please.”

“Oh Jess, I’m sorry, I’m so used to protecting it, I’m sorry.”

“So it really is true, you are Supergirl?”

Kara took off her glasses and looked at Jess, “What do you think?”

“Oh my god, you really are her.”

“Shhhhhhhhhhh. I’m not ready to tell Lena yet.”

“Okay, but don’t make her wait, she needs your trust.”

“I know but this morning she needs coffee and donuts.”

“Go on in, Ms. Danvers.”

“Thank you Jess.”

Kara knocked lightly on the door, and stuck her head in, Lena looked up and smiled, not her CEO smile, but her genuine Lena smile that she saved only for her close friends. “Kara,” she yawned, “How are you this morning?”

“I’m fine, you on the other hand are exhausted, why don’t you call it a day and head home.”

“I have a business to run Kara.”

“Ms. Luthor, all your meetings have been rescheduled for later this week.”, Jess announced over the intercom.

“Or not.”

“So you will go home and get some rest?”, Kara asked.

“Only if you promise to come over later for dinner and a movie.”

“It’s a deal.”

“I give up then, I will head home.” Lena responded, “You want a ride to CatCo?”

“Do you mind?”

“Not at all Kara, not at all.”

After dropping Kara off at CatCo, Lena kept her word and headed home where she rested for the day, napping and eating a small lunch. Kara texted her multiple times throughout the day just to check on her, making her smile each time. She ordered pizza and potstickers for her and Kara and made sure everything was ready in the living room for girls night. Tonight was going to be all about her and Kara and just hanging out, no heroics, no work, just them and whatever musical the two of them decided to watch tonight.


	2. Tempest Strikes

One month later…

TEMPEST STRIKES, Again

Kara smiled as she read the story, the armored heroine had been handling all sorts of crimes in National City and Kara seemed to be getting the byline on every store. Hell, she had gotten the first picture, completely by dumb luck, cause she had been at the bank when those idiots had tried to rob the bank. She had been stuck in a crowd of people, unable to change, and Tempest had blown in and stopped the robbery. Kara had been lucky enough to snap a picture with her phone and Cat had made sure it made the front page, along with Kara’s story about the robbery. The latest story was about a fire downtown, which she had been unable to get to because of a couple of aliens, but Tempest had jumped in and stopped it. Her technology was amazing, her armor seemed to be capable of protecting her from anything and her weapons were all non lethal, which Kara could definitely appreciate. The biggest problem, is now Snapper and Cat wanted her to find out all she could about the new heroine. She didn’t even know where to start.

Texting

‘Lee, can I come by your office tomorrow afternoon?’

‘Kara, you never have to ask, is everything okay?’

‘This isn’t just personal Lee, I need some help with a story.’

‘Is this about Tempest?’

‘Yes, I’m sorry, I need your technical know how.’

‘Kara I’m honored, not upset.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Of course Kara, come by around 9ish, we can have breakfast and I will answer any questions I can.’

‘Thanks Lee, I appreciate it.’

‘You’re welcome Kar, see you tomorrow.’

Kara smiled and set her phone down, thank goodness Lena understood. She needed to share something anyway, she needed to tell Lena the truth, she needed to let her know everything. In her office, Lena was thinking the same exact thoughts.

Later that evening…

“Kara”, CADMUS in in town, they are currently attacking an Alien shelter on the south side of town.

“I’m on my way Winn.”

Kara sped towards the shelter. It was surrounded by CADMUS troops armed to the teeth. She wasn’t sure if she could take them all without someone getting hurt.

“Kara, you have company coming from the North, looks like Tempest is on her way.”

“DEO is on their way in as well, they will be there in 10 minutes.”

“Thanks Winn.”

Kara started by checking locations, making sure she wasn’t missing anyone. She did a full perimeter check and started taking out the guards from the out perimeter first. Tempest was busy as well, as she took out long range shooters. Tempest settle beside Kara, “What’s our next step Supergirl?”

“We need to take out the guards closest to windows and doors first, make sure the aliens in that building are safe. Are you okay with that?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well your armor is impenetrable to my vision, so I am pretty sure you are human.”

“So you scanned me?”

“I stopped at your feet, you obviously want to protect your identity, so I am honoring that.”, Kara responded, “Now we can talk after this if that is okay, let’s stop those people now.”

“Agreed”, Tempest growled, “Let’s get them.”

Kara and Tempest were making quick work of the guards, when the DEO arrived. The CADMUS troops decided to turn tail and run. But first they wanted to take a shot at Supergirl. They waited til her back was turned and aimed a Kryptonite rifle at her. The shooter lined the shot up and while Supergirl was engaged, took the shot.

Tempest saw the shot, “Supergirl!!!!!”, she screamed. She fired her rockets and blasted towards the unsuspecting super heroine. Kara turned towards the scream, just as Tempest pushed her out of the way and took the impact of the round on her left side. She grunted, but her armor healed itself around her. 

“Tempest, are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine, probably gonna bruise.”

“Thank you, I owe you my life.”

“Nonsense, you are Supergirl.”

“That doesn’t stop me from getting hurt?”

“Are you always so modest?”

“It’s not modesty, it’s true, CADMUS has weapons that can hurt me, they’ve done it to me several times. They actually got me so bad a few months ago, I thought for sure I was gone.”

“Well if you ever need help, I am here Supergirl.”

“Same here Tempest.”

The two superheroines shook hands and flew off in separate directions.


	3. Revealed

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara finds out what Lena has been doing. Secret identities are no longer secret. Tempest is taking a forced vacation.

The Morning After

Kara arrived at Lena’s office 15 minutes early, as usual. “Is she in Jess.”

“I think she is Kara, I was a little late this morning, but I have been hearing her shuffle around all morning.”

“So I can just go in?”

“Of course Kara, she’s the boss and she gave you unlimited access.”

Kara attempts to open the door, “Jess, it’s locked?”

“What?”, the fear showing in her eyes, “She never locks it.”

Kara pushed hard, the door flying open. “Lena!”, she screamed, “Jess, call Alex now.” She rushed to Lena’s side, she noticed blood on Lena’s side, she’d been shot. As she got closer, she notices something else as well. There was a faint green glow emanating from the wound. “Jess, it’s Kryptonite.”, she grunted through the pain.

“Kara, are you okay.”

“Yes, tell Alex, lose dosages of Kryptonite are in her system, and she has lost maybe two to three pints of blood. She’s in shock, heart rate is steady but low and breathing is shallow. Tell her I’m fine, but I’m going to need about 4 hours under the lamps.”

“Alex did you get all that?”

“Kara, we will be there in 10 minutes. Jess, watch her close, if the green glow reaches her chest, get her out.”

“Okay Alex.”

“Love ya sis.”, Alex whispered as the call disconnected.

“Lena, can you talk?”

“Kara, hide.”

“I’m okay Lena, you were shot, you were shot with a Kryptonite bullet, when? Who? Why?”

“Pr, Pr, Pro, protecting my friend.”

“Oh Rao, you’re Tempest?”

“Sorry, should have told you.”

“Lena, I was going to tell you something this morning.”

“Kara, Kara I know. Thank you for sharing, but I’ve known for months. It’s why I built Tempest, so I could protect you.”

“Oh Lena, I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you sorry Kara.”

“You got shot defending me.”

“You are more than worth it.”

“Where’s the armor Lena? We need to protect your identity.”

“Far wall, lead panel.”

“Is it safe.”

“Yes. Don’t tell anyone please?”

“I won’t Lena, I promise.”

“Thank you.”

Alex and the DEO response team came charging in. “Kara, is she okay?”

“She is doing okay Alex, but the bullet is still in and the Kryptonite is leaching into her system.”

“We can help her Kara, but we have to take her to the DEO, she will find out.”

“I already know Alex. Kara told me just now.”, Lena smiled weakly.

Alex’s head bounced between Kara and Lena and back again. “You pick a weird time to tell her.”

“I was here to interview her, I planned on telling her afterward.”

“I was just kidding Kara, trying to lighten the mood a bit”

“Sorry, it’s Kryptonite, which means it was meant for me.”

“Wrong place, right time Kara.”, Lena said, gripping Kara’s hand.

“Something I should know Kara?”, Alex asked, looking at their interlaced fingers.

“Not yet Alex.”, Kara said

“We’ll meet you at the DEO in 30 minutes Kar, after we leave, search for anything that could explain where the bullet came from okay.”

“Okay Alex, but stay with her please.”

“Of course Kar, she is going to be fine.”

“I know Alex, but she is, important to me.”

“Kara, are you okay.”

“I’m fine Alex, I know she will be okay, but she scared me.”

“I’ll stay with her Kara, just search, find something and we will figure out who got to her okay.”

“Okay.”

The DEO transported Lena out and as soon as she was far enough away, Kara could feel her strength return. She took a deep shuddering breath and asked Jess to come in.

“Kara, are you okay. I didn’t realize that small amount of Kryptonite would affect you.”

“Any amount really, but I stayed to close for to long.”

“Can I do anything to help?”

“Just need a minute, and then we have to cover for Lena.”

“I know Kara, I overheard, will she be okay with it.”

“She’ll understand Jess, you are her family.”

“Her Tempest suit is in a lead wall, let me search.”, Kara said as she scanned the walls, “There it is.”

Jess opened the panel of the wall Kara identified, and noticed a vault door with a biometric scanner. “It’s locked Kara, biometrics.”

“Okay, thank goodness.”, Kara sighed, “Now I just need a cover story for Lena, for last night.”

“I can generate a receipt for a nearby restaurant, maybe she came to check out Supergirl and Tempest while eating a late dinner.”

“Jess, you’re a genius.”

“I know, that’s why Lena keeps me around.”

“Thanks Jess”

“Take care of our girl, Supergirl.”

“Oh I will”

Kara got up to leave and called Alex to check on Lena. “She’s in surgery to remove the bullet Kara, then she will need a week or two to recover, how about at your apartment.”

“If she agrees I will get some of my vacation time.”

“She already agreed Kara, I talked to her on the way to the DEO, and I cleared it with Cat, so get here, check on your girlfriend and then head home to clean up and prepare for a guest.”

“On my way, Alex.”, Kara said, blushing.

She spent the rest of the day and night at the DEO to make sure Lena was okay, then the following morning she took her best friend to her apartment for an extended girls night.


	4. The Apartment

Kara had decided late last night that Lena deserved a proper reveal, so when she picked her up to take her back to her apartment, she was dressed in her usual outfit, khakis, a button down shirt and a sweater, along with her glasses and ponytail. Underneath though she was wearing her uniform.

Kara entered the DEO as Kara Danvers and several strange looks, they are knew who she was, but no one was used to seeing her walk around like this. She headed straight to the med bay where a very impatient Lena was waiting in her wheelchair. “Hey Lena, you ready to escape.”

“Kara, you have no idea, your nanite tech is amazing, but it itches like hell.”

“Sorry, I don’t feel it when I get treated.”

“You developed the tech to heal you?”

“With Alex’s help, I have been hit really hard a few times, and well, you know, Supergirl can’t really fly around town with a open wounds, so the nanite technology and sun lamps make the healing process quicker.” She answered, then continued, “I didn’t realize that you would be able to feel them as they heal you.”

“How many times have you been injured, Kara?”

“I don’t know?”, Kara hung her head, she didn’t want to freak Lena out.

“Kara Danvers?”, Lena asked again, pleading with her eyes.

“A lot Lee, Alex has a medical history. Maybe I could let you see it, when you feel better.”

“Easy enough, I already added Lena to the computer system, you login and password will allow you in from any laptop as long as the system itself is secure.”

“Why Alex, why did you add me?”

“You need to understand what you are getting into in this life we have Lena, the more you know, the more careful you will be. You mean a lot to my little sister and lately you have meant quite a bit to National City, haven’t you Tempest.”

“Lee, I didn’t say a word. I swear it wasn’t me.”

“Then how? How did you figure it out Alex?” 

“The extensive bruising, not only at the point of impact, but all over your body. The fact that you and Kara seemed to be hiding something, badly, but hiding something none the less, and the fact that Jess had a receipt for a restaurant close to the attack, but no one remembered seeing you there.”

“Guess I will need to work on cover stories.”

“Don’t take any hints from Kara, she’s has slipped so many times it is hilarious.”

“I’m right here Alex.”

Lena and Alex started laughing, until Lena coughed. “I’m fine, I haven’t laughed like that in ages.”

“Gee thanks, nice to know my embarrassing actions bring such joy to you two.”

Both women sucked in the next laugh as Kara’s eyes glowed.

“Well if you two are done, I will take the patient home.”

Lena blushed a bit at Kara’s choice of words, Alex noticed, but Lena’s pleading eyes made her bite her tongue. She just nodded at the CEO.

Kara pushed Lena towards the motor pool. Alex had already signed out a car to her, so she access for a few days. She easily moved Lena to the front seat, and got into the drivers seat. “Kara, do you actually know how to drive?”, she asked.

“Yes, I know how to drive, I know how to ride a motorcycle too.”, Kara answered, sticking her tongue out at Lena. “Just because I fly most places, sometimes I to have to drive or it would seem suspicious.”

“Kara, I didn’t mean, oh shit, I wan’t being mean.”

“Lena, I know, no one ever expects me to be normal.”

“I didn’t mean it that way either. I’m sorry, I screwing this up.”

“Screwing what up?”

“Us, this, our friendship.”

“Lena hon, you are rambling. I thought that was my thing.”

“Sorry, maybe it’s the drugs.”

“Lena, we have two weeks while the nanites do their job, we need to talk.”

“Are you upset with me? About Tempest?”

“No, actually, I am pretty impressed by Tempest. You need to show me your tech later, I have a few ideas for you.”

“Aren’t you full of surprises, I thought you were just a reporter.”

“I am, but my degree is in engineering.”

“Really? Color me impressed. I think we need to get to know each other a little bit better Ms. Danvers.”  
“I couldn’t agree more, Ms. Luthor.”

Lena smiled at the last comment, it seemed her little fantasy about Kara, may be something more than a fantasy.

“We’re home.”

Lena blushed again at Kara’s wording, and her heart rate increased.

“Are you okay Lee, your heart started beating really fast.”

“I’m okay Kara, that’s a conversation for another day, okay?”

“Of course, let’s get you upstairs and settled in.”

Kara carried Lena upstairs to her apartment, and settled her on the couch with the remote, a cup of tea and a few snacks she knew Lena liked. “I’m going on patrol, I should be back in about an hour, is that okay?”

“Yes, can you bring me some stuff from the office?”

“Jess is sending everything over tomorrow and she upgraded my internet to the fastest speed because we both agreed you wouldn’t actually stop working while you are here.”

“I really need to give that girl a raise. But I actually need to you bring Tempest here.”

“Lee, I can’t get into the vault, it’s biometric.”

“Actually you can, IaddedyouwhenIprogrammedit.”, Lena answered quickly.

“You what?”

“I added you when I programmed it, that way you could get to it if anything happened to me.”

Kara blushed, honored by her friends act. “What do you need?”

“Do you mind if I bring the armor here?”

“Nope, not at all.”

“There is a remote control and a bracelet in the vault. Enter code 2521959 and the armor will activate and run a patrol program til you can get it home to me.”

“I can do that. Thank you Lee.”

“For what Kara?”

“Being my friend”, Kara answered, then in a whisper, “and maybe more.”  
She then quickly changed into her uniform and kissed Lena on the forehead before launching out the window to start her patrol.

“Back soon Lee, I’ll bring your stuff and we can order Big Belly for supper.”

“Bye Kara, be safe.”

She dozed off while Kara was gone.


	5. Patrol

Kara’s first stop, L Corp. She landed on the balcony and slid the door open, keeping an ear out for any alarm. She didn’t know that Jess had disabled the door and balcony alarms while Lena was out of the office. She quickly walked across the room and opened the access door to the vault. She placed her palm on the reader, it scanned as she held her breath, and then, the door opened. She grinned, because she realized there might be more to her relationship with Lena than she thought. Now she was standing in front of Tempest and the first thought she had was how proud of Lena she was, this technology was amazing, the suit felt smooth, very few joints, but it was armor. She lifted it, but it was hard to judge weight, because of her strength, but it just didn’t feel that heavy. She found a few seams and bolts, but for the most part the suit was solid. “She 3D printed the whole thing, including the circuitry, this is so cool.”, her inner geek screamed. She took out the remote and keyed the code. Tempest’s eyes lit up, a bright blue, she had never noticed that before. The armor seemed to go through a self test and then waited. Kara looked down at the control, she saw two options, Shutdown or Patrol. She taped on patrol and watched as Tempest lifted off and shot through a concealed exit in the ceiling. The remote was made to fit on her wrist so she slid it on and then reached in and grabbed the bracelet Lena had requested. Then she launched into the sky through the same exit. “Please no trouble tonight.”, she silently prayed.

Kara was hovering, playing with the controls on the Tempest remote. She realized that the interface was as much mental as physical, so she practiced a few basic maneuvers. Tempest was really good, acceleration was fast, stopping power was actually better than her own, but the turning was not very tight, which could cost seconds because Lena would have to slow down when taking one. The weapons system must have been an afterthought, because the menu was easy to read, but response time was slow, maybe with Lena on board it was faster, but without her, the machine was sluggish in it’s response time. Finally she deduced that Lena had installed no defense mechanisms, that would have to change or her Luthor would get hurt again. “My Luthor, where did that thought come from.” She said outloud.

“Kara? Where are you?”

“Sorry Alex, something going on?”

“No Lee woke up and said you had told her patrol would be just an hour, it’s been almost three.”

“Oh Rao, can you text her, I’m on my way, I was, I lost track of time. Her heart rate never spiked.”

“Calm down, I’m sending her a text now. Is everything okay?”

“I was messing around with Tempest.”

“Nerd, you lost track of time because you were playing with a remote control robot.”

“Uhh hmm, well, maybe.”

“I just texted her that too.”

“Gee thanks Alex.”

“So what did you think?”

“Her tech is amazing, but I can see a few places where she could use some enhancements.”

“Well J’onn want’s Tempest to join the DEO, so if you need something let me know, and we can get you some lab stuff for home.”

“Really, thanks Alex.”

“It’s what big sisters are for.”

“And you’re the best.”

“I know. How is she doing?”

“She’s okay, I want to do a real reveal but I have something else I want to tell her also.”

“Kara, do you have a crush on Ms. CEO.”

“I think it’s worse than a crush.”

“Really, are you sure.”

“Yep, she takes my breath away, she’s smart, she’s as sassy as Sara, she’s beautiful, did I mention she is smart. She’s perfect Alex.”

“Then you need to tell her how you feel, that way you don’t spontaneously combust.”

“I will, just let her heal for a few more days.”

“That makes sense, you want her to be 100% when you drop that one on her. I’ll be by in the AM to check on her, want anything?”

“Coffee and crullers.”

“Okay, I’ll be by around 9:00 A.M.”

“Thanks Alex, love you sis.”

“Love you to sis, bye”

Kara programmed Tempest to head towards her apartment, but wanted to race to test acceleration and turning. She built in a timer, and then 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, GO….

10 minutes later, she landed in her apartment, and Tempest set down right beside her.

“So did my tech pass your test Kara?”, Lee laughed as she asked.

“I’m so sorry Lee, the tech and programming are so cool, I lost track of time playing with them. I didn’t mean to be gone so long.”

“It’s okay Kara, I’ve been asleep for the most part, probably the best sleep I have had in forever. Would you like to share what you think.”

“I don’t want to be critical, Tempest is your baby.”

“Kara Danvers, you have been a super heroine for 3 years, and you have lived with your abilities since you were?”

“13”

“13 years old. If you have an opinion or criticism, I would appreciate it as a rookie. And as your friend, it amazes me that I never realized how much you understood about the tech I was explaining.”

“Sorry Lee.”

“For what Kara?”

“Not telling you sooner, not letting you in to that part of my life.”

“Kara, I knew you were Supergirl, and I know you have your reasons for not telling me, I know it wasn’t a trust issue. I understand even better now, because you need to protect the people in your life, and it seems even harder when they have ties to Supergirl.”

“Thank you Lee.”, Kara started to cry as she knelt down hugged Lena, her arms around Lena’s back and her head in her lap.

Lena, let her Super cry, rubbing her back, or running her fingers through Kara’s hair until she settled down.

“Feel better?”

“Yes, I have just felt overwhelmed since I found you in your office. I guess I didn’t realize how hard it was to keep secrets from you, you mean an awful lot to me Lee.”

“Same here Kara, do you need to snack before bed?”

“Yes, and a shower.”

“Well I am going to settle back on the couch, Alex texted and said she would be here in the morning.”

“You are not sleeping on the couch, period.”

“Kara, I am not putting you out of your own bed.”

“No we can share, that way I am close if anything happens to you.”

“You sure?”

“Absopositvely”

“You are a total nerd, and wait, we didn’t discuss your opinion.”

“It’s on her log, I made sure so I wouldn’t forget anything. I’m going to take my shower, then I will make us some omelets if that is okay.”

“That’s fine by me.”

While Kara was in the shower, Lee ran through the log, Kara had figured her system out really well and had made detailed notes on limitations where she thought improvements could be made, and that it was her opinion that Lee made a difference in overall performance since she would have better control while in the armor. The defense thing was interesting, Lena hadn’t thought of that at all. “Damn, the girl is a genius, and she is as gorgeous as an angel.” She was about to stop the log when she noticed that Kara hadn’t turned it off during her call with Alex, she heard everything, including how the Girl of Steel felt about her. “She thinks I am perfect, God I am so in love with that woman.” She then made a few notes about the race home, “Damn Kara is fast, and the G’s she pulls in a corner.” Every single thought that Kara had about Tempest was dead on, and it wasn’t just that Kara could test the tech, she actually understood it, and wanted to make improvements, not take it away and keep Lena out of trouble, she wanted to help her, to continue to keep her promise to keep her safe. But the smile on her face when Kara came out of the shower was all about Kara’s feelings, but that would come in it’s own time.

Kara was oblivious to Lena’s knowledge of the conversation she had with Alex, instead she figured Lena was just happy to have Tempest back. “Anything special in your omelet?”

“Just make mine smaller than yours, please?”

“I never have leftovers Lee.”

Make a mental note of that one, “Increase food budget.”, she smiled to herself.


	6. Email

Kara pretty much didn’t give Lena a choice about bed, so after she tucked her in and did a quick scan of the city, Kara crawled into bed and fell asleep.

Lena slept for about four hours, her sleep schedule was totally messed up between her schedule at L Corp, as Tempest and then so much sleep while recovering. Kara was zonked, of course, she probably hadn’t slept at all since she found Lena at L Corp. The poor thing, she was even talking in her sleep. “Lena, Lena”, Kara whimpered, “I’m sorry I didn’t, I should have, I love you, that’s why.”

‘Oh my God, she didn’t tell me because of how she feels. She was protecting me, by not telling me, I couldn’t be used against her, she wanted me safe from harm because she loves me.’

Lena gently kissed Kara on her forehead, and settled herself before getting out of bed. She entered the bathroom and checked her wound, it was completely closed, only a puckered scar remained, and if she understood Kara’s technology, soon that scar would be gone as well. She knew some internal damage remained, because she was still sore and tender, plus the itch persisted. Her super was amazing, this nanite tech was an absolute medical miracle, but of course Kara would never think to profit off of her work. The CEO inside her thought that was a pity, but she understood that was not who Kara was, she might have to talk to Alex about it though, it might help lower Kara’s stress levels. It was only 5 in the morning, maybe she could get a bit of work done on Kara’s computer.

She logged into the L Corp server, damn if Jess didn’t do a fantastic job on the security and speed, to check her email, stock prices and current projects. Stock prices were fine, actually up a few points, which Jess attributed to the good press she had received after being injured. She scanned a few of the news story, and popular opinion seemed to weigh on her side, so Jess was correct on that assessment. Current projects were going well, one particular medical treatment was slightly ahead of schedule, Jess made notes on that one as well, seems the lab had made a breakthrough on delivery, cheaper, easier to produce and oral, instead of injectable. She looked over the notes, thankful that she hadn’t skipped any of her microbiology classes in school. The labs were following all proper protocols, all findings were reported to both National and International bodies with listed changes and test findings. She didn’t think they were breaking any rules, but she would highlight that particular lab so she keep up with everything. Finally, her email…

Everything was normal, except one.

From: unknown source

To: L.Luthor@lcorp.com

I know who you are Tempest.

Love,

Lex

Lena felt her heart rate spike and instantly, Kara was by her side. “Lena, what’s wrong?”

“Read”

Kara read the email, “Lee, it’s okay, I’m here, he doesn’t know where you are and believe it or not my apartment is one of the most secure places in the world. Okay, I’m here Lee, breathe, relax, we will catch him together.”

Lena heard Kara, and slowly she relaxed. Kara was right, together they could accomplish so much. Finally she took a deep shuddering breath. She couldn’t keep anymore secrets from Kara, she needed Kara as much as Kara needed her, somehow, the universe had spoken and determined that these two women belonged together. “Kara, who’s Sara?”

Kara blinked, shocked by the question, “You know?”

“You may be incredibly intelligent, but you are terrible at keeping secrets from me. You recorded your entire conversation with Alex, so when I was going over your notes about Tempest, I heard everything.”, Lena admitted, “Then this morning, you were talking in your sleep, and you said you loved me.”

“Damn I’m an idiot.”

Lena was shocked at Kara’s outburst, she never swore. Then she let loose in what Lena could only help but think was Kryptonian.

“Kara, slow down, I’m not upset, I just can’t not tell you everything now, you need to know so we can get through everything together.”

“Sorry”, Kara said taking a deep breath.

“Was that Kryptonian? Did you just swear in Kryptonian?”

“Yes”, she blushed, “It’s the only language I speak that I was pretty sure you don’t know.”

“How many languages do you speak?”

“About 15?”, she answered, “Not including Alien languages.”

“How many total?”

“68 total.”

“Holy shit!”

“What?”, she asked innocently.

“I have missed this whole side of you, why do you hide how smart you are?”

“Because it doesn’t fit the image I have built as Kara Danvers. She is a reporter, someone who can come and go and not attract notice. Other than the stories I have written about you and L Corp, I do mostly fluff pieces that don’t attract attention. Hell, sorry, the only reason I got the front page was because I was at the bank when you came blasting through as Tempest.”

“We really are connected aren’t we?”

“I like to think so Lee.”, Kara answered, looking at Lena, not just to see her, but to see if Lena could accept her for who she really is.

“Why me Kara?”, Lena asked, wondering how this beautiful intelligent woman had somehow plucked her from all the people in the world.

“Lena, do you have any idea how strong you are, not in the physical sense, but your spiritual strength. You are absolutely the strongest person I have ever met, you are like Alex, you protect and love with every bit of yourself”, Kara answered confidently. “You see on Krypton, family is the most important thing to each individual, you surround yourself with people who both pick you up when you fall and push you even harder when you succeed. That is you, you have that power, to see the best in everyone, and push them to be even better.”

“You really think that about me, that I am like Alex. That I am that person.”, Lena said with glassy eyes, tears forming in the corners.

“I don’t just think it Lee, I know it to the very depths of my soul.”

Lena walked towards Kara, meeting her eyes and seeing how deeply Kara believed what she was saying. As she got closer, she held out her hands, which Kara took, pulling her into a hug, that if Kara hadn’t been controlling her strength would have been bone crushing. “Lena Kieran Luthor, may I kiss you, please.”

“Please”, was all she got out before her lips met Kara’s. The kiss started slowly, as they tested the boundaries. With every flick of their tongues, they slowly realized there were none. What started as a get to know one another better led to a kiss for all time. They kissed deeply and passionately, but then Kara noticed Lena’s heart rate rising. She slowly broke the kiss, “Lena we have to slow down while the nanites work, otherwise that are going to head to your heart to slow it down along with your blood pressure.”

“Uhhhhhhhgggggggg”, Lena screamed.

“Yeah I know.”, Kara smiled, seriously considering a cold shower.

“How much longer?”

“Can I scan you?”

“You just had your tongue down my throat, I think that would be fine.”

Kara giggled, scanning the beautiful CEO and checking on her nanites, she also made sure to check out a very sexy Lena under her clothes. “That’s cheating Kara.’, Lena growled.

“Can I help it if I completely admire your body.”

“You literally have the body of a goddess and you are ogling me.”

“You are the sun that gives me strength Lena Kieran Luther, you complete me in so many ways, without you in my life, I would surrender to the darkness, in Rao’s name.”

“That was beautiful, what does it mean.”

“On Krypton, it means you have found your soulmate and wish to begin the bonding ritual, on earth, I think I just asked you to be my girlfriend. In a really dorky way.”, she answered grimacing.

“Yes, my beautiful dork, I will be your girlfriend.”

“Yayyyy,”, Kara screamed, as she kissed Lena again.

Lena smiled at her girlfriend, “You didn’t tell me the results of the scan.”

“Oh sorry, three more days of nanite treatment according the their current progress, then they will clear your system over a period of 12 hours.”

“That’s amazing.”

“I aim to please.”

“You better, cause in five days, I may be ready to explode.”

“Love you Lee.”

“Love you too Kara.”

By unspoken agreement, the duo decided that their discussion about Tempest could wait a few more hours, til Alex came in. Lena got dressed in comfy leggings and one of Kara’s Once Upon a Time t-shirts and settled on the couch to get a little more work done. Kara curled up beside her like a cat and fell back to sleep. For the first time since she could remember, Lena worked with a smile on her face. First things first, Jess gets a raise she thought.


	7. Alex

Lena knocked out a bunch of work while Kara slept on the couch. She signed off on several projects that needed her approval, contacted HR about Jess, making sure she got a raise and she contacted a few of her investors to make sure they understood that the company was still in her hands and she wasn’t going anywhere. Several emailed back quickly, wishing her a swift recovery and promising that there money was going no where.

At 8:55, Alex appeared at the door. Lena got up to answer it, letting Kara continue to sleep on the couch.

“Hey Alex”, she whispered.

“Kar still asleep?”

“Nightmares?”

Instantly alert, “Bad?, Are you okay?”

“I’m fine Alex, why?”

“She didn’t hurt you?”

“No Alex, why?”

“She sleeps very soundly, you have to be careful waking her.”

“I didn’t, I let her settle back down, and then got some work done.”

“Very smart Lena.”

“Thank you”

“Now, what’s on your mind?”

“An Email.”, her heart spiked, and she frowned.

“Lena, are you okay?”, Kara asked, instantly alert, “Alex, what’s going on?”

“It wasn’t me Kara, she want’s me to look at an email.”

“I didn’t think it was you, Alex, I know you won’t hurt her.”

“Kara, are you, have you and Lena?”

“No…..”, both women answered simultaneously, blushing.

“Not til Lena is healed.”

“Yes ma’am”, they both answered.

“Let me see the email.” Alex read over the email, then she immediately contacted Winn. “Winn I am sending you an email, I need you to to do whatever you can to track it. This is level 1 shit Winn, priority, let J’onn know.”

“Yes ma’am, have you already forwarded…Holy Shit Alex, Lex Luthor.”, Winn yelled. “Did it come through Lena’s server?”

“Yes Winn, the one at L Corp, I logged in securely from Kara’s apartment.”

“Okay, so your internal scanners would have wiped any viruses or Trojan horses.”

“And you know that how?”

“Will you kill me if I tell you?”

“No but Jess might.”

“No comment.”

“You hacked my system? I want to know how? I want to know why?”

“That’s on me Lena, I was worried about you, the hack happened after you came to the DEO for treatment. We were looking for signs that anyone inside L Corp was working for CADMUS, no personal information at all, I promise.”, Alex said, not wanting to cause any issues.

“You hacked my proprietary software just to check on me?”

“You are very special to Kara, I need to make sure that you are okay.”

Lena turned her head to hide the tears, no one had ever cared about her the way the Danvers sisters did.

“Lee are you okay?”, Kara asked.

Lena nodded, afraid that if she spoke she would cry in front of Kara and Alex. Kara sensed the tension and wrapped her in a hug.

“Lena, I’m sorry, we can undo it.”

Lena turned in Kara’s arms and motioned for Alex to come closer, Alex walked over and was enveloped in a hug from Lena. Shocked, she was sure what was happening. Then Kara’ pulled them both in. As soon as Kara wrapped her arms around the both of them, everyone relaxed, an unspoken agreement had been reached, Lena was now part of the Danver’s family.

“Is there something I should know?”  
“Lena is my girlfriend Alex, we talked, kind of.”

“Kind of?”

“I recorded our conversation that night when I was playing with Tempest.”

“And Lena listened and then you told her you loved her this morning while you were asleep.”

“She told you I had a bad dream.”, Kara asked.

“She was worried Kara, and I wanted to make sure she was okay.”

“I didn’t hurt her, did I?”, Kara started to cry.

Lena was instantly by her side, “No darling you didn’t, you let me calm you down and you fell back to sleep.”

“Were, were you scared of me?”

“No Kara, I would never be scared of you.”

“But I can hurt you.”

“You wouldn’t hurt me on purpose Kara, I know that.”

“Okay Lee, I’m sorry, I broke Alex’s arm once when I was under the influence of Red Kryptonite.”

Alex hugged Kara, making sure her sister was well aware that there were no hard feelings.

Lena spoke up, “How about some coffee, then we can talk about Tempest and my new role in the DEO?”

“The donuts are still okay, but the coffee is cold.”, Kara said, “We have a Keurig in my lab though.”

Lena stopped cold, “You have a lab?”


	8. The Lab

“Yes I have my own lab.”

“Where?”

“Here and the DEO.”

“Where here?”

“Bring the donuts and I will show you.”

Kara led Lena into the bedroom, she opened the the closet door, and then, placed her hand over an off colored panel. It read her palm, and a doorway opened up leading down a hallway. Kara led them down the hallway and down a spiral stairwell to her lab.

Lena came down the steps, and stopped cold, as she realized that Kara’s lab was almost an exact duplicate of her own engineering lab at L Corp. Kara smiled to herself as she realized why Lena was so shocked.

Alex broke the moment, “Kara redesigned the lab after she met you, she made a few improvements in the computer systems and installed a secure link between here and the DEO. She also has an amazing 3D interface for her computer system. 

“Bring Tempest down here Lee, so we can work on her.”

Lena tapped the remote control on her wrist and brought Tempest down to the Lab.

“Harley, scan exterior of Tempest battle armor, and save the files under Lena 01.”

“Scanning and saving Kara.”

“Also, add Lena Luthor to your security protocols. Voice and biometric.”

“Good morning Lena, please stand still while I scan you into the systems.”, 30 seconds later, “Good morning Ms. Luthor.”

“Good morning Harley.”

“Voice print enabled, Lena Luthor is now added to security protocols.”

“Good morning Alex, how are you today?”

“Doing well Harley, thank you.”

“Tempest, security protocol, Supergirl 2521959, Harley, you now have access to Tempest operating system. Please scan and add to file Lena 01”

“Yes Lena, scanning in process, estimated time, 45 minutes.”

“Lee what are you doing?”

“I’m adding all of Tempest to your database, you suggested improvements, now I get to see what you are capable of.”

“Two nerds in their natural habitat.”

“Shall I open up your medical protocol files Alex.”

“Harley, when did you get sass?”

“Kara has been updating me on a regular basis, my personality is an amalgam of Lena Luthor, Alex Danvers, Eliza Danvers.”

“How?”

“Kara Danvers has programmed me to learn, I have interviewed Eliza Danvers and Alex Danvers, but everything I know about Lena Luthor I have learned from Kara Danvers, I am looking forward to interviewing Lena and adding to my sass.”

Kara and Alex started giggling and finally Lena gave up and joined them. 

Twenty minutes later, “Tempest scan is complete.”

“Harley, run diagnostics, full scan, compare to Kara Danvers system notes in the system.”, Lena said, then asked, “Where is the Keurig?”

“In the corner.”

Lena walked over to the coffee machine and noticed that Kara had all her and Alex’s favorites flavors, not to mention a cup with her name on it. She started a good dark roast and walked over to Kara who was talking to Alex about work stuff and kissed her on the cheek, then walked back to the coffee maker.

“What was that?”, Alex asked.

“That was a thank you.”, Lena answered from the corner.

“For what?”

“Kara doesn’t drink coffee except to make people think she needs it, so the coffee maker is here specifically for you and I Alex, and I would be willing to bet it has been here for quite some time.”

“Lena’s cup has been in that spot for 5 months, 14 days and 35 minutes. It was printed on my 3D printer.” Harley spoke up.

Kara blushed and Lena and Alex just laughed. “I printed it the day I realized how much I like Lena.”  
Lena and Alex laughed that much harder. Kara pouted and pulled two crullers from the box and went to check Harley’s readouts.

“Scan is complete, Tempest armor system could be updated and efficiency improved by 23.2 percent based upon Kara’s initial testing. Defensive capabilities could be updated by 97.3 percent, taking into consideration the Armors plated.”

“Can you explain the primary updates?”, Lena asked.

“Based upon Kara’s current engineering work, booster efficiency could be upgrade by 13.6 percent, allowing for faster acceleration and overall speed. Acceleration would increase by 6.8 seconds from standstill, and with a built in inertia dampener, could go higher if necessary. Overall speed can be increased by 175 miles an hour, based upon suit design and base metals used. Turning actually needs more testing, but Kara’s initial assessment, however like Kara I believe turning needs to be tested while the operator is inside the suit, since the remote could be working slower than the neural interface currently in operation. Weapons are all in good working order, and non-lethal, Kara approves, however power usage is higher than necessary and recommendations for lower power levels could be initiated through a software update until a different solution could be found. Defensive measures could be set up using Kara’s nanite technologies, this would offer both power saving features and since they can be programmed, their work could be controlled by the operator. There is also the question of Kara work on a force field, a low power array that would work to deflect most modern firearms and some high caliber weapons.”

“So Harley, are you telling me that most of these upgrades could be done based upon Kara’s current work?”

“That is a correct assessment Lena.”

“Oh my God, Kara you are leaving CatCo and coming to work for me.”

“Does that mean I couldn’t date you?”, she said sadly.

“Darling no, why would you think that.”

“People would think you were playing favorites.”

Lena smiled, “Kara, we would consider you a contract employee, long term, but you would have your own lab, you get to choose your projects, I would only be the financing. A typical contract would be for you to receive about 45% of the income if your project goes to production. The copyright and trademarks would belong to L Corp.”

“Wait, I would get paid for creating and selling?”

“Of course, that is what engineers do, they create. At L Corp I get the best because I pay the best.”, Lena answered. “My regular employees do not get contract deals, but they have higher salaries and better bonus structure than my contractors.”

“But that would mean putting my name on the inventions.”

“It would”

“People would know I am smart.”

“Kara, you are a bloody genius”

Kara smiled shyly at the compliment and Lena realized at that moment that Kara never got credit for what she could do, only what Supergirl could. Alex smiled as she realized that Lena was giving Kara a gift that very few people ever did, she was accepting Kara and realizing that Supergirl was what Kara could do, not who she was.

Lena walked up to Kara, put her hand on her shoulders and as Kara looked up said, “Kara, who you are is not defined by what you do as Supergirl, you are Kara Danvers, and you deserve to be your own person.”

“Thank you Lena”

“Anytime sweetheart.”, Lena said through a yawn, “I must be more tired than I thought.”

“You need to rest Lena, your body is still healing.”, Alex said.

“I know, this is just amazing.”, She pointed to the lab.

“Yeah, my sister is pretty awesome, but as your doctor, I’m going to insist you get a nap.”

“I’m going to be down here working for a bit, if that’s okay?”, Kara asked, “You only have to say my name and I will be right there.”

“Okay sweetheart, but don’t push to hard.”

Kara brightened, and kissed Lena lightly on her lips, “I’ll be up before dinner.”

“I set up an order of pizza and potstickers for about 7ish”, Lena said, knowing she was going to sleep for quite a while.

“Okay, if you are up to it, we can watch the new Mary Poppins movie and catch up on the Crown.”, Kara smiled.

“Sounds really good.”, Lena smiled.

Lena and Alex headed back upstairs. Kara went back to work.

Once they entered the apartment, Alex looked at Lena, “Thank you Lena.”

“What for?”

“Seeing more than Supergirl.”  
“Alex, I have had a crush on your sister since the day she came in with Clark Kent to interview me.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, before I realized she was Supergirl, I fell for Kara Danvers.”

“Lena, would be okay if I hugged you.”

“Yes, but why.”

Alex pulled her into a hug and answered her question, “Because she deserves someone who doesn’t see Supergirl.”

Lena settled into Alex’s arms and realized she hadn’t gained just a girlfriend, she was gaining an entire family.

“Now get some rest, but set up your food order first. My cell number is on the fridge, if you need me, text first, always easier. If Kara has to go out in an emergency, I will be here when you wake up okay?”

“Okay.”

Alex helped Lena get settled on the couch and headed out.

“Kara.”, she whispered, “Lena’s on the couch, she’s tired, so keep an ear out. I will do my best not to call you today. Have fun in nerd central.”

As she entered the elevator she got a text from Kara, “Thank you Alex, love you.” Followed by a chain of hearts that made her realize her little sister was going to be just fine with Lena Luthor.


	9. Kara at Work

Once she heard Alex leave and Lena settle for the day, Kara got to work.

“Harley, let’s approach this problem from two sides. How much Nth metal do we currently have in our lab at DEO headquarters.”

“According to inventory we have 1248 pounds, if I may assume your thoughts, that would be enough to build 4-5 Tempest Units.”

“What if we combined the Nth metal with nanites?”

“Probability of success with current nanite technology, 74 percent, I would recommend using updated experimental nanites, success rate increases to 97 percent.”

“For testing purposes, print one of each at 1/60 scaleDEO, include Winn’s stealth tech and have them come here after they are completed.”

“Printing commencing. Estimated time to completion 45 minutes.”

“That’s enough time for testing the field generator.”

“Agreed”

“What level were we up to Harley”

“Current level is at 65 percent.”

“Up to 70 percent, and prepare for rapid assault.”

Kara picked up a handful of ball bearings and walked into the next room. In the center of the room was a mannequin. “Okay Harley, set up for test, set fire point at 1/10 second and beep on each, we will try wide disbursement.”

“Set, begin test in 4, 3, 2, 1…”

Beep…fire…bounce

Beep…fire..bounce

Beep…fire.bounce

This continued for about 10 minutes, till Kara used up all her ball bearings.

“Results Harley?”

“All projectiles were deflected, power levels and programming well below emergency levels. Battery drained by less than 1% overall, charging now.”  
“Okay Harley, let’s take it to 75 percent, rapid response, small area.”

“Test parameters set, begin in 4, 3, 2, 1…”

Every ball bearing was out of her hands in less than a second.

“No damage, battery drain at less than one percent. Would recommend 30 minute test cycle at 100 percent levels, variable programming.”

“Set parameters Harley.”

For the next 30 minutes Kara sent a steady hale of heat vision, ball bearings and fist going at the mannequin, nothing could get through.

“Test complete, battery drain at 2 percent, charging is working as normal, all parameters met, I would qualify this test as a success, should I log it at headquarters.”

“Yes ma’am and text Alex, let her know we go it working the way we wanted. It’s ready for production.”

Kara received a text from Kara minutes later, “Great job sis.”

Kara smiled and let Harley know she was going to dash out for lunch. She returned 20 minutes later with Big Belly and an extra peanut butter chocolate smoothie. 

“Kara while you were out both models arrived. I completed a scan and model one is in good condition, however I noticed 4 major faults in the armor and two faults in the old nanite tech. Model two is in perfect condition, only one nanite failed, and it looks to be a bad production unit, not a fault in the model itself.”

“Fantastic Harley, I figured you would be right, I just needed to see the results for myself.”

“Of course Kara.”

“Okay Harley, next step, full size production, but we need a way for Lena to carry it everywhere and be able to access it quickly.”

“Lena has a fondness for silver jewelry, perhaps silver bracelets”

“Excellent idea Harley.”

“Test with small model 2, lets see if we can make it work.”

Kara placed the model on the table, and she and Harley went to work to shrink it into two bracelets. After an hour, she could make everything work except the power source. “We need a smaller more efficient power source Harley.”

“Current Earth technology cannot be further adapted.”

“What about Kryptonian tech.”, Kara thought aloud. “Harley, pull up file Astra 05 and display on center table.”

“Acknowledged Kara.”

A model of her Aunt Astra appeared in 3D on the center of her work table. “Hello Kara, what can I help you with.”

“Aunt Astra, can Kryptonian power crystals be adapted to work with Earth technology.”

“Yes, but the power source would not be have to be very large.”

“So to power a exoskeleton, human size, I would need a very small crystal.”

“Yes but it would have to be cut properly”

“Of course it would, diamond cut. Weight vs. power output would need to be maybe ½ earth karat to power Lena’s armor.”

“I am not programmed to understand Lena’s armor”

“Sorry Aunt Astra, I was thinking out loud.”

“Your mother did the same thing.”

Kara smiled, “Thank you Aunt Astra, that’s all I need for now.”

“Good evening Kara Zor-El”

“Love you Aunt Astra”, Kara whispered.

Harley, I need two Kryptonian Crystals cut into ½ carat cuts, one green, one blue. This will power the full suit. They will become the center piece of each bracelet.

Kara worked on the armor design for an hour, making minor tweaks here and there, always listening for any change in Lena. Finally the design was done, and she stood back to look over the 3D representation of Tempest.

“Harley, update software and do you mind taking over as Tempest AI?”

“My opinion does not matter, I was built to serve.”

“It matters to me Harley.”

“Then I have no objections Kara.”

Prepare final model and send to DEO printer in main lab. I will pick it up when it is complete.

“Main printer is online, no other jobs in the queue.”

“Proceed please Harley.”

“Estimated time to completion 1 hour at high speed, will check for faults as it prints. Software writing will take approximately 15 minutes, shall I have it come here when it is complete.”

“No this one I will pick up Harley, thanks.”

“Your welcome Kara. Printing commencing.”

Kara straightened up the lab, cleaned up the coffee cups and donuts, threw away her trash from lunch and headed upstairs while calling Alex.

“Alex, I am printing something at DEO Lab 2, I will be by to pick it up when it is complete.”

“What did you make?”

“Be here at 7:30 and I will show you.”

“Won’t Lena mind?”

“I’m betting no.”

“See you then sis.”

“Love ya Alex.”

She hung up and headed to the balcony. After scanning the city and seeing everything was okay, she decided she need a shower. She had just rinsed her hair when Harley beeped her. “Process complete, with 10 minutes to spare.” Harley announced.

“Kara?”

“I’m in the bathroom hon, be right there.”

Kara came into the living room and saw Lena waking up. She smiled and kissed her on the forehead. “How do you feel?”

“Better, guess my body is still healing.”

“You’re doing wonderful”

“I have a surprise for you tonight, and I invited Alex to see it too.”

“Really, what is it?”

“Wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you.”  
“Please”, Lena pouted.

“That actually works, but nope, not telling.”

There was a knock at the door. Alex let herself in after knocking.

“So what’s the secret?”, she asked.

“Be back in a second.”, then using super speed she dashed to the DEO, gathered the bracelets and boxed them, and got back to her apartment, “okay, so maybe 3 seconds.”

“Kara?”, Lena asked.

These are for you Lena. Lena opened the box, and saw two beautiful silver cuff bracelets one with a blue stone the other with green. “These are beautiful Kara. What are they for?”

“They are just a gift Lee, nothing more I promise.”, Kara answered with a blush, then continued, “Can you put them on and think about Tempest?”

Alex looked at Kara, trying to figure out where this was going, Lena on the other hand was studying the bracelets, “Are they remotes?”

“Not exactly, try them on, and remember think about Tempest.”

Lena slid the bracelets on, and thought about Tempest just like Kara asked. Suddenly the bracelets started to cover her body with a thin armor until finally she was covered completely in the Tempest armor.

“Oh my god, Kara you did this?”

“Wow”, Alex gasped.

“It was me, do you like?”

“Hello Lena, how does the armor feel?”, Harley asked.

“Harley, are you in my AI?”

“If that is acceptable.”

“It’s wonderful.”

“Neural connection is complete, try thinking of removing your helmet.”

Lena barely got the thought in her head and her face and head were uncovered. 

“Reaction time is in the nano seconds.” Harley said.

“Kara this is wonderful, I love it. Can I test it?”

“No”, both Alex and Kara said simultaneously.

“48 more hours Lena.”

“Okay”, she pouted.

“Now think of the bracelets.”

Instantly the armor began to retract, forming back into the bracelets on her wrist. The process was barely complete when she walked up to Kara, grabbed her and kissed her fully on the mouth. As she pulled away, she looked Kara in the eye, “I love you”

“I love you too”, Kara said with a tear in her eye.

The pizza and potstickers were delivered a short time later, and they all settled down to watch a movie. Kara insisted that Alex stay, since she had kept her up so late.

Kara got Alex settle and then her and Lena headed towards the bedroom. Lena was feeling better, but still a bit tired. Kara was tired, but a good tired. They settled onto the bed, then Lena remembered and removed her new bracelets, placing them reverently on the nightstand. She rolled over to face Kara and smiled as she leaned in for a good night kiss.

“Love you babe.”

“Love you too Lena.”

They fell asleep in each other’s arms.


	10. Just Talk

The girls slept in the next morning, well, Lena did. Kara laid there staring at her girlfriend, wondering how she had been so lucky to find Lena Luthor. 

Lena started to stir, opening her eyes and seeing to seas of blue staring at her. She smiled, “Hello darling, have you been up long?”

“No really, just a couple of hours. Enough time to scan the city, check the news and come back to bed to watch you. Sorry, that sounds creepy.”

“No, more like hopelessly romantic.”

“Lee darling, I wanted to ask you something?”

“Same here sweetheart.”

“You first Lee.”

“Kara, how do you pay your rent on this place?”

“I don’t”, she cringed as she answered. “The DEO actually owns my apartment building, Alex is my landlord. I miss so much work due to my duties as Supergirl, they decided to take over the building so I wouldn’t have to move. Then they secured the two floors below for my labs, and everything under that is housing for the DEO.”

“Wow, so you live and work here, plus your job at CatCo. You really are a Supergirl.”

“It is tiring and lonely sometimes. Since I defeated Non and my Aunt Astra died, Kal and I are really the only two Kryptonians on Earth, and he doesn’t really remember anything but what the history crystals have taught him. He can’t even speak Kryptonian.”

“Could I learn it? Is it hard?”

“You can do pretty much anything you set your mind too Lena, I have a program in the lab that could help you learn to speak my language.”

“Really?”

“Yeah I wrote it a long time ago for Alex, but she got so busy with medical school, and then the DEO, that she hasn’t really had time to stop and learn it.”

“Would you teach me about Krypton?”

“You really want to learn about my planet?”

“Anything that is important to you is important to me Kara. I don’t want to sound strange, but what’s your Kryptonian name?”

“Kara, Kara Zor-El”

“So you really are Kara.”

“Yep that’s me, dorky, nerdy Kara.”

Lena leaned in and kissed her on the tip of her nose, “You are my dorky little nerd. Back to what I wanted to ask you though.”, she paused and bit her lip, a little nervous.

“Anything Lena, if I can do it or answer a question, just ask.”

“Can I stay here?”

“Lena, you already are?”, Kara questioned.

“No, I mean, can I stay here after I heal.”

Kara squealed, smiling and floating over the bed.

“Is that a yes?”

“Yes, yes, yes, oh Zhao, you are welcome into my home for as long as you wish to be here.”

“Zz hhaoo?”

“Oh, sorry, Zhao, means love, well it means romantic love, love for a person.”

“So I am your Zhao?”

“If you want to be?”

“I do. I really do.”, Lena answered, “But Kara, I come with baggage.”

“Lena, everyone does, I’m an Alien orphan with the ability to tear this planet apart, I have separation anxiety if I don’t hear from my friends at least twice a week, Eliza, my foster mother, texts me at least everyday and Alex texts me at least 20 times a day. I’m kinda needy, I guess, watching my whole planet explode was kinda a traumatic experience and I can’t seem to stop worrying about losing the people I love.”

“You’ve never told me that before, I always wondered why you seemed so panicky if you didn’t hear from me. I assumed you were worried about me, I never realized you needed to know you weren’t being abandoned.”

“Lena, I will always worry about you, you are my Zhao, my best friend, a super heroine, the CEO of a multinational corporation, and I’m sorry Lee, but your family is a bit, interesting.”, Kara said matter of factly.

“Kara, my family is certifiably insane.”, Lena laughed. “They are the reason I work so hard and why I find it so difficult to believe that you accept me for just being Lena. Not a Luthor, not Tempest, not being a CEO, just me, a lonely little girl who grew up to be a lonely woman. One who was lucky enough to have her best friend walk into the office to interview them, and then fall in love with me. We make a good team as a super and a Luthor, but most of all, we are really good together as Lena and Kara.”

Kara picked Lena up and brought her down so that she could kiss her on the forehead, then hugged her, as tightly as she could without breaking her. Then she did something she only did when she was truly happy, she floated holding Lena like a china doll, not wanting anything to end this moment. “Zhao, could you take me flying sometime?”

“Anytime Lee, anytime.”

Then the super and the Luthor kissed as Kara settled them back on the bed.

As they broke apart, Kara’s stomach growled. Lena smiled, then started giggling, then finally they were both laughing so hard that they had tears in their eyes. “Guess that’s a sign we need to eat.”

“I’m afraid so, I normally consume about 20,000 calories a day.”

“Wow, how do you afford all that food?”

“It is a majority of my budget every month.”, Kara laughed. “And Eliza is a great cook.”

“Well let’s go make some pancakes and coffee. And then I can get some work done, while you do what you do.”

“Okay, Lee. I have a few ideas to bounce off of Harley today.”

The morning passed peacefully for the two of them, Lena worked most of the morning, letting the nanites work, she knew she was at the end of the treatment, because the itching was starting to go away. Kara had warned her that tomorrow would be rough, she would be tired all day while the nanites cleared her system. Kara was downstairs, working with Harley, she had some really great ideas, including a few medical uses for her nanites. “Kara honey, I’m going to take a nap.”, she whispered.

“Are you okay Lee.”

“Oh my god, Kara, you need a bell sometimes darling.”

“Sorry Lee.”

“I’m fine, except for my heart attack, I just feel tired, guess the nanites are working extra hard today.”

“Couch or bed?”

“Bed please.”, she answered as Kara picked her up and carried her into the bedroom to tuck her in. She didn’t even try to pretend that it bothered her that Kara was babying her. She enjoyed it just a bit, no one had ever really spoiled her like this, and now, her Zhao, Kara was, and it felt amazing.

Kara kissed her, then whispered, “I am going to do a quick patrol, be back in about an hour.”

“Be careful, love you Kara”

“Love you too Lee, I will be”

After making sure Lena was settled, Kara changed and took off for her patrol. She was back an hour later after stopping several crimes and stopping an Alien who was busting up the sewers on the south side of town. Lena was still asleep, so Kara took another quick loop around town. Twenty minutes into her patrol, Kara was attacked by an Alien whose fingers had been dipped in a liquid form of Kryptonite. She won the fight, but the damage was already done.


	11. Kara’s Armor

Alex finally found Kara, lying in alley about a mile from where the fight ended. Her veins were green and her eyes were rolled back in her head.

“Kara, can you hear me? You are going to be okay, we are taking you back to the DEO.”

“Alex, call Lena, don’t let her think I’m not coming home.”

“I’ll call her Kara, just relax, the sun lamps will help.”

“New nanites Alex, try them on me, capsulated, they should help. I’m sorry.”

“Kara you don’t have anything to be sorry for, you beat him.”

“But you have to babysit me again.”

“It’s what big sisters do Kara, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Okay, can I sleep now.”

“Yeah sis, ambulance will be here shortly.”

Kara’s eyes rolled back and she sighed. The ambulance arrived about 5 minutes later. As Alex got Kara settled, she called Lena.

“Hello”, Lena answered sleepily.

“Lena it’s Alex.”

“Is she okay, Alex, is Kara okay?”

“She will be Lee, Kryptonite poisoning, she needs the sun, about 12 hours worth.”

“Where are you taking her, back to the DEO, can I be there, Alex I have to be there, she can’t be alone, please let me come.”

“Lee, slow down, Hank already arranged for you to be taken to headquarters, your ride will be there shortly, just remember, you are still healing.”

“I know Alex, but you know her, if she wakes up alone, she will freak.”

“I know Lee, that’s why I was with team that was looking for her.”, Alex said, tears flowing down her face, “You were her first thought Lena. Are you ready for everything that comes with being with her? She needs you Lena Luthor, she loves you, she respects you and I don’t think she could live without you.”

“Alex, I’m here for her, I really love her.”

“Okay, sorry Lena, I’m tired and worried and I am stressing at you, I’m sorry.”

“She’s your sister Alex, I understand.”

“So are you now Lena.”

“Oh”, Lena was speechless.

“Now get dressed, something comfortable, they will be there shortly.”

“Ok”, still at a loss for words, Lena hung up and rolled out of bed, she threw on a pair of black leggings and one of Kara’s National City University sweatshirts. She slid her feet into her Nikes and grabbed her laptop bag, phone and the stuff she would need for an overnight stay. As she entered the living room, she heard a knock at the door, the DEO agent stated the correct code word and Lena headed downstairs with him. They got her into their SUV and headed towards the DEO.

At the same time the Ambulance rolled in and they immediately took Kara to the Sun Room. Alex quickly headed to the lab and grabbed one of Kara’s capsulated nanite treatments and ran back upstairs. She got Kara awake long enough to give her the treatment capsule and some water, then they laid her under the lamps and cranked up the power.

Lena arrived 15 minutes later, slightly winded, and a little stressed. They immediately took her Kara’s treatment room, she saw Hank and Alex standing by the window looking in. “Hank, Director Henshaw, thank you.”

“Ms. Luthor, our girl has taken quite a liking to you, you don’t have to thank me, just don’t break her heart.”

“Not going to happen director.”

“Then you can call me J’onn, I will explain later, understood.”, then he handed her a badge, “This is yours, you are officially a member of the DEO as of 48 hours ago, specifically, you are attached to Kara’s team, which means you have full access to all DEO equipment and a defined by the guidelines on the forms Alex will have you sign later.”

“Thank you.”, again at a loss of words. How much influence did Kara have that Lena was a member of the DEO that quickly.

“To answer that question Ms. Luthor, Kara is a Deputy Director, Engineering Division, so she has a good bit of pull here. She isn’t just that big shield on her uniform.”

“Huh, did you just read my mind?”

“Maybe.”, He smiled and headed off to the command center.

“Alex, what just happened?”

“I’m not a hundred percent sure til I look over the paperwork Lena, but I think Kara was just made your commanding officer.”  
“Oh Rao, she’s my boss in the DEO?”

“Yep, I think so.”

“Is she going to be okay, you seem so calm, and I am just rambling about being in the DEO?”

“Yeah, I kinda wanted to show you something, you know you have nanites in your system?”

“Yes, they work with your system energy to heal, and a small computer guides them, all self contained.”

“Well this is what Kara’s next level nanites can do.”, Alex said as she showed her tablet to Lena.

“Holy shit. Those things are going after the Kryptonite in her system and healing her at the same time. They are like homing missles.”, Lena said, “this is the same tech that she put in my armor Alex.”

“I know, she also made it a point to make sure that these are being issued to all DEO agents in their personal medical kits.”

“That girl is amazing.”

“Super even?”, Alex cracked, giggling at her own joke.

“Alex you are exhausted, do you want to get some rest?”

“I don’t want to leave her alone Lee.”, then Alex thought about what she was saying, “Sorry Lee, I’m kinda used to being the person who is there for Kara.”

“Alex, I don’t want to come between you two.”

“No Lena, I don’t mean it that way, Kara has to know that someone is there, especially when she is hurt or when a mission goes sideways. She holds everything in, and it has a tendency to eat her up, if she can’t talk to someone about it.”

“I can help you be that person Alex, I promise.”

“Lee, Kara put all her faith in you, just days after she met you, and I know she is rarely, if ever, wrong about a person, so I trust you completely. But as her big sister, I have to protect her.”

“Alex, that is why I built Tempest. It wasn’t because I wanted to be a hero, it’s because I wanted to make sure Kara always had someone in the sky with her.”

“Wow, Lena, you are totally in love with her aren’t you?”

“Yes, completely. She called me her Zhao.”

“Her love, her person.”

“You know, you know what it means.”

“Yes Lena, she built a program to help me learn Kryptonian, its hard, but I have learned a bit.”

“She didn’t think you had the time.”

“Not as much as I would like, but she is my sister and I make time here and there. It’s not easy for a human to learn, but we can do it.”

“She doesn’t know does she.”

“Nope, and you better not tell her.”

“I won’t tell her, I promise.”

“Good, cause I want it to be a surprise when I make the speech at her wedding.”

“She waking up Alex, can I go in?”

“Only if you want a major sunburn.”

“Will my armor protect me.”

“It should.”

“Tempest”, Lena whispered, and her armor formed around her, leaving just her face.”

“Try thinking about a clear face mask”

Lena concentrated and could feel the mask form over her face. Alex scanned her quickly and pronounced it good to go, the nanites would filter the sunlight so that Lena wouldn’t burn in the sunlight.

Lena entered the room and moved towards Kara, “Hey darling, are you doing okay?”

“I feel better, a little worn out, sorry, I’m supposed to be taking care of you, and then this happens.”

“Kara, baby, this is what you do, it’s who you are. You rush into danger whenever someone needs you. You can’t change who you are anymore than I could, and I wouldn’t want to change you ever. You inspire everyone you meet Kara Zor-El, including your friends, family and your Zhao.”

“Thank you Zhao. Are my nanites working?”

“Perfectly, you seem to have the programming working really well. You are really amazing at technology.”

“They will help so many people.”

“Starting with my most important person, now get some rest, you should be out of here in about 8 hours, so get some sleep. I will be back in the morning to pick you up okay.”

“Okay Lee, thank you for coming.”

“Kara, you never have to worry about me being here for you.”

“Thanks Lee, I love you.”

“Love you too darling.”, as she leaned down and kissed her loving girlfriend and watched her drift back to sleep.

Lena snuck out after that, then after making sure her armor was okay, then asked Harley, “Harley can I see Kara’s medical file.”

“Negative, you have not yet signed your non-disclosure forms.”

“Belay that Harley, override per Danvers, Alexandra, Assistant Director, override code 715231.”

“Alex?”

“It’s okay Lena, you are going to sign your papers today, so don’t worry, everything will be okay.”

“Have you seen this entire report Alex, she has been injured so many times. I realize she always heals, but the trauma Alex, the near constant recovery, it’s a miracle she hasn’t been killed.”

“Now you know why I worry about her Lee.”, Alex said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

“Alex what’s wrong, none of this is your fault.”

“I know Lee, but she’s my sister.”

“Do I have access to the lab Alex, and Harley?”

“You do.”

“Are you going home tonight?”

“Highly doubtful, why?”

“Want to help me in the lab tonight? I’m going to create something to help our girl out and since neither of us is going home, I figured you might want to help.”

“Lena you know I don’t know much about mechanical engineering?”

“No, but you know Kara and you know physiology.”

“So what’s the plan?”  
“We are going to use Kara and Harley’s Tempest design as a template for a new suit for our Supergirl.”

“Okay, you think she will approve.”

“I don’t think even Supergirl can stand up to both of us.”

“I think I am going to greatly appreciate having you by her side Lena.”

“Thank you Alex, now let’s head down and get started.”

10 Minutes Later, DEO Lab #2, Kara’s lab…

“Hello Harley.”

“Hello Lena.”

“How are you tonight?”

“I am running quite well, how is Kara?”

“She is recovering Harley, her nanite 2 technology is working perfectly.”

“I am following her recovery closely, we can track it here in the lab.”

“Harley, I have a feeling you miss Kara.”

“I am not programmed for emotion.”

“If you say so Harley, bring her up on screen please.”, Lena paused for a moment to watch Kara sleeping, then turned back, “Harley can you bring up the files on my current Tempest armor.”

“Alex, my armor is heavier than Kara needs, if we reduce to a few millimeters using the nano tech and her shield technology, we should be able to create her a near indestructible suit that should protect her in a worse case situation.”

“Can you include sensors that would allow for tracking and monitoring her vitals. I can get the exact readings we need to take and where the sensors need to be placed.”

“Yep, we can do that for sure.”

“Okay, show me what to do and I will start the medical stuff for you.”

Lena and Kara began working on the armor well into the night, making improvements and trying to figure out the best way for Kara to carry it around. Finally, it was Harley who had the best option. A watch, one that would work on a sensor located in Kara’s glasses. When she removed the glasses, the suit would be released from the watch, covering her body and enabling the shield and medical tech. Kara would be as close to protected as the two women in the lab could make her.

“Great job Alex, you don’t give yourself enough credit for what you do and don’t know.”

“And you Lena, are amazing, I am glad you have joined our little family, and I am so glad Kara has you in her life.”

The two women hugged one another tightly and then figured they had better get some sleep, since they would be taking Kara home in a few short hours. 

Both women settled in to one of the bunk rooms and collapsed on their beds. She could already feel the exhaustion leaving her body as the nanites left her system. She was tired, but for the first time in a few days, she felt like herself, and she lived up to her personal promise to keep Kara safe.


	12. Commander Kara

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a fluff piece to define Kara's character as a leader. It's also a tribute to one of my readers.

“Kara, what’s wrong darling?”, Lena asked as she walked into Kara med bay. Kara was in tears, staring at the floor, and hugging herself.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

“Tell you what Kara?”

“One of my team was injured last night, why didn’t someone tell me that.”

Alex spoke up, “Kara, Lena didn’t know, hell I didn’t know til about an hour ago.”

“She out of the field Alex, I should have been there, she was covering my patrol.”, Kara was angry, not with Alex but with herself.

“They volunteered Kara, Veronica could not have know what was going to go down in that bar last night, neither could have you.”

“He stabbed her Alex, that damn knife destroyed her spleen and part of her colon. She won’t be able to go out in the field ever again, and she will be in recovery for weeks. If I had been 100 percent, this wouldn’t have happened.”, her eyes flared red.

“Kara, stop this right now.”, Lena snapped. “This girl knew the dangers and she volunteered, yes she was injured, but she didn’t die, and according to this, she saved 4 lives and took down the alien that stabbed her without killing him.” She handed her tablet to Kara with the report on it. “Don’t belittle her actions by thinking it couldn’t happen again. She was brave and she was doing her job, a job you inspired her to do. As her commander, I understand that you are upset, but you can’t blame yourself every single time things go sideways Kara, the world doesn’t work like that.”

“But no one on my team has ever been injured before.”

“Kara, it was going to happen, you and the DEO have a dangerous job, honor her, give her a job in the lab, according to her records she is a software genius, maybe you can find a project for her that will make the best of those abilities. Let her know that she is important to the DEO whether she is in the field or not, let her and the rest of your team know that you are there not just as Supergirl, but as their CO, and you care about them.”

“You’re right Lena. Alex I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have taken it out on you.”

Lena kissed Kara on the top of her head and leaned in to hug her. Alex wrapped both of them in a tight hug, she had signed many condolence letters before Kara came out as Supergirl, and even though the number had dropped significantly after Kara started with the DEO, Alex still took every single injury or death personally.

“Lena, how did you get so smart.”

“My family had a tendency to treat people as disposable, since I took over L Corp, I have had to work very hard to accept people as people, that everything they do, no matter how small or how large, they are important.”

“Well according to the internal boards, everyone is getting a pink streak in their hair to honor Veronica, think you could pull that off sis?”

“Maybe, Harley, are the nanite 2’s still in my system.”

“Yes Kara.”

“Can you program them to create a pink streak in my hair?”

“We have never tried that before, I am reworking their programming now.”

30 seconds passed, then 45, then a minute, suddenly, Lena gasped, “Kara, it’s working.”

Kara got up slowly and headed towards the mirror, just in time to watch a pink striped about an inch wide form from the scalp and run down the right side of her hair. “Can I go see her Alex?”

“Yeah she is in critical care downstairs.”

Lena and Kara made their way down the hallway to the elevator, everyone was staring and smiling at Kara’s hair, making her a bit self-conscious. “Kara honey, you fly around in a blue leotard and skirt, but changing your hair makes you blush.”

“Not used to everyone staring.”

“Listen to what they are saying darling.”

Kara concentrated and heard the members of the DEO talking about how amazing it was that even Supergirl was honoring Veronica, several were even considering transferring to engineering and development just to serve on her team. As she heard what they were saying, Kara’s head came up and she started walking with more pride than before, realizing the effect she was having on the whole team was more important than wallowing in self pity.

“That’s my girl.”, Lena said as they entered the elevator.

They arrived on the next floor and were quickly pointed in the direction of Veronica’s room. The young agent was in critical care, not because her life was threatened, but because the loss of her spleen could make her susceptible to infection. Kara went in alone, since she was immune to diseases here on earth.

“Hey Veronica, how ya feeling.”

“Tired”, the young girl said, “They aren’t going to kick me out of the DEO are they?”

“No ma’am, you will be joining my personal research team when you finish recovering. We saw that you have a degree in programming, and that is not one of my strong points.”

“Really, you’re going to let me stay on.”

“You did everything right Veronica, you saved innocent people and you stopped the bad guy, just like a hero is supposed to do. Going forward you will just have to do it from behind a keyboard. Is that okay?”

“Yes ma’am”

“Okay, so get better soon, and I will have them send you some of our current projects while you are recovering.”

“Thank you Supergirl.”

“No, Veronica, thank you, for reminding me that you are all heroes.”

“You need to get better too, and I love the pink, it looks good on you.”

“It’s for you, your going to see a lot of it around here. Now get some rest.”, Kara said as she patted the girl’s hand and watched as she drifted back to sleep. Kara left the room and found Lena waiting for her, “Can we go home now?”

“Of course we can darling.”


	13. Housewarming

Kara and Lena arrived home to Kara’s apartment, Lena hadn’t wrapped her head around the fact that it was actually their apartment. Kara’s was exhausted just from the trip home, the Kryptonite poison was enough to take a toll on her system, and Lena knew it would be days before she was back to 100%, 

“Kara hon, do you want to take a nap, relax for a few hours. Alex and some of the gang are coming by later.”

“Do you mind, I know we had plans to test Tempest, I’m sorry.”

“Kara, the most important thing right now is that you get well, I know it will take days for you to get back to 100%, and I am here to take care of you, I promise.”

“Thank you, Lee, I promise, as soon as I get better, we test Tempest.”

“It’s no rush darling, Tempest is not going anywhere.”

Lena walked Kara into her bedroom, their bedroom, and got her settled into bed. “Hey Kar, would you mind if I brought some of my stuff over?”

“Why would I mind Lee, it’s your home too.”

“God, I love hearing you say that.”

“Love you Kara.”

“Love you too Lee, don’t let me sleep to long, k?”

“I won’t Kara, everyone will be here around 6.”

“K”

Lee stood in the doorway, waiting for Kara to fall asleep, once the beautiful blonde fell asleep, she texted Alex.

“She’s asleep”

“Good, everything is set for tonight, everyone is in.”

“Okay, thanks for everything Alex.”

“No problem, I will be in the lab downstairs in an hour. Winn and James and a few of my off-duty guys are helping with your stuff. A few of Kara’s tech people will be in the lab as well to help with your little project. Everyone is coming for dinner and movies tonight; she will be surprised all the way around.”

“Don’t forget the white noise projectors in the lab, I don’t want her to hear us.”

“Already activated, you know she is going to sleep hard after the Kryptonite and this morning’s stress.”

“I know. I just worry”

“Lena and Kara sitting in a tree”, Alex texted back, with a ton of emojis.

Lena giggled, and poked her head back in, to check on Kara. Her super was sound asleep, hadn’t so much as moved from the spot. Lena headed down to the lab, after placing a camera so she could keep track of Kara.

Down in the lab…

“Hey Harley”

“Hello Lena, how is Kara doing?”

“She is doing quite well Harley. She is asleep upstairs. Harley, there is a camera upstairs in Kara’s room, it is Bluetooth accessible, would you like to log in?”

“Yes Lena, that would be satisfactory.”, Harley responded.

Harley scanned the Bluetooth and connected quickly to the camera. “She is asleep, all rhythms are normal, there is a slight concentration of Kryptonite still in her system, but the nanites are flushing it out.”

“Harley, would you like more access, more than just the lab.”

“I am a learning AI, that would be quite satisfactory. My current limitations are the lab here and the Lab and Kara’s medical suite at the DEO.”

“I’m thinking of giving you full access to all of Kara’s floors in this building, plus Tempest and I would like to give you full access to L Corp servers.”

“Thank you, Lena.”

“No thanks are necessary Harley; it makes Kara’s and my job easier and you will have the ability to learn more.”

“Now, Jess was supposed to have had a dedicated line set up from here to L Corp.”

“Yes ma’am, the line was installed by a full crew this morning, would you like me to test connectivity.”

“Yes please, connect to L Corp servers, login Lena001, password K@r@2521959.”

“Connection complete, speed test is complete. Upload and download speed at 12% over advertised rate.”

“Excellent. Download all data to your local servers Harley, and make sure it is a constant connection, any problems, report to Jess please.”

“Affirmative Lena. The information shows a new uniform for Kara.”

“Shush Harley. It’s a surprise.”

“I apologize Lena.”

“It’s okay Harley, I didn’t think to classify it from you, I forgot Alex and I worked on in without inputting all the information into the DEO servers.”

“Lena, you have an email coming in on your personal computer, from Alexander Luthor.”

Lena took a deep breath, keeping her heartbeat steady.

From: unknown source

To: L.Luthor@lcorp.com

I will find you Lena, you can’t hide from me.

Love,

Lex

“Lena are you okay?”, Harley asked.

“I’m okay Harley, didn’t expect that. Can you forward this to Alex please and remind me to tell Kara?”

“Forwarded, and reminder set.”

“Thank you, Harley, now, you need to have speakers, cameras and a 3D generator upstairs, correct.”

“Yes ma’am”

“Okay, while I work can you scan her new uniform and make sure everything meets the guidelines Alex and I set up.”

“Affirmative”

Alex arrived about 45 minutes later, along with everyone in the DEO it seemed. They turned on the white noise generators so Kara could rest and started setting everything for Harley and for later tonight.

Around 5:30, Lena and Alex made sure everything was ready, and Lena went in to wake up Kara.

“Hey honey, wake up, it’s 5:30.”

“Hey Lee, can we cuddle.”

“No darling, company is coming, and we have a surprise for you.”

“What is it?”

“Not telling, till everyone is here.”

Kara pouted and Lena, looked at her and smiled, “No ma’am, not going to work.”

“Fine, I’m going to jump in the shower.”, Kara responded in mock anger.

“Don’t take long, as she pulled Kara in and kissed her fully on the mouth.”

Kara simply melted into Lena’s arms and they spent five minutes just enjoying each other’s company.

Kara got through her shower and dried off and got dressed, then headed into the living room. She stopped dead in her tracks as she saw that Lena had been very busy. She had brought some of her own things into the apartment, including her TV, which Kara loved, her table, which seated all of their extended families and books and clothes, which were neatly stacked in the corner. There were little things as well, knick knacks that Kara recognized as completely Lena, her MIT mug, her personal laptop and tablet. 

“I kind of took over the other bedroom as well.”

Lena had converted the other bedroom into a study, one that she could use from home, but what stood out more than anything, Kara had a desk as well.

“That way we can work together.”

“Oh Lee, I love it.”

“You sure.”, she asked shyly.

“You did this for us, Lee it’s wonderful, absolutely amazing.”

“It’s going to be our home Kara; it has to be right.”

Kara pulled Lena into a kiss, letting her know that she completely agreed.

As they were kissing, Harley announced, “Guest are arriving through the primary elevator.”

“Harley?”

“Hello Kara, Lena has given me access to the whole apartment.”

“Wow, how do you like it Harley?”

“My current learning level has increased by 10%, the phrase, I love it, seems to be enough.”

“Just wonderful, what else?”

“There are projectors in the kitchen so that we can do 3-dimensional imaging and you can access your Kryptonian archives without entering the lab.”

“You did this for me Lee.”

“Yes Kara, you are worth all this and more.”

“Thank you again Lee.”

They were about to kiss when there was a knock at the door.

“Ugggghhhhhh.”, Lena and Kara say together.

They open the door and their entire extended family is there.

“We decided a housewarming party was necessary since Lena has decided to move in with you.”, Alex said.  
Kara and Lena smile and they all enter the kitchen and living room relaxing and eating. Talking and carrying on. Even Harley is in on it, as she converses with all of Kara’s friends. As the evening comes to a close, they all stand and raise their glasses to the new couple.

Then Alex and Lena hand Kara box. “This is from both of us Kara, we worked on it while you were resting.”

Kara opened the box to find a simple gold chain, something she could wear every day, and a very small chip. Lena took the chip and attached it Kara’s glasses. Then as Kara turned around, she clipped the necklace on her neck.

“Now Kara, I need you to take your glasses off at superspeed okay.”

“Okay Lee?”, Kara responded questioningly.

She backed into the center of the room and whipped her glasses off. Instantly, a uniform starting to form from the neck down. It quickly formed, wrapping her entire body in a form of armor, must like Tempest. Finally, her boots were in place and she looked down, looked at Lee and smiled.

“Pants!”


	14. Dominators

“Lena, this is amazing, you and Alex did this, for me.”

“Yes, darling.”, Lena answered, “You need to be better protected when you go out, this suit includes your nanite 2 tech, a smaller version of your field generator and some anti kryptonite technology. Plus, Alex included medical monitoring tools, and she recommended a built-in solar array so that you have access to yellow sunlight when you need it.”

“We also included a tracker and GPS locator.”

“Wow, how did you hide the electronics?”

“That was Lena’s idea, everything is in the belt, and the primary power source is tiny so that helps.”

“You used my Tempest designs, got rid of the weapons, weight, and software, and used Kryptonian crystals for a power source?”, she questioned.

“Yes.”, both Alex and Lena answered, thinking they had done something wrong.

“What cut?”

“Triangle, because the suit requires less power than Tempest, and we used a green crystal because the power output is more consistent.”, Alex answered.

“Very good, you used the level 2 nanites? Did you change the programming?”

“Color and processing speed only, the suit pattern we just used your basic design for Tempest.”, said Lena, feeling like she was being quizzed by a college professor. “Did we do anything wrong?”

“Not at all, but neither one of you has ever worked with Kryptonian crystals and I wanted to sure you understood what you were dealing with. They can be a little dangerous, and most of the instructions for dealing with them are in Kryptonian, and neither of you speaks or reads…”

“I can Kara.”, Alex spoke up, interrupting. “I have been learning forever, with Lena’s help we figured out what crystal to use, and Harley helped with the cut. We were trying to help you.”

“You can read Kryptonian, you understood, why didn’t you tell me?”

“I wanted to surprise you, I wanted to make a speech at your wedding, I wanted to be the big sister you deserve.”

“And the new costume was my idea, Zhao. We wanted to protect you.”  
Both women looked as if they were about to cry, so Kara stepped forward, gathering them into a much-needed hug, “I’m sorry, I worry about both of you so much, I forget that you worry too. Can you forgive me?”

“Of course, we can sis.”

Lena’s answer was more personal as she pulled Kara in for a kiss.

“So, when do I get to test my suit?”, Kara asked.

“In about 3 days, after the kryptonite is completely out of your system,” Alex answered.

Kara instantly started pouting. Both Lena and Alex looked at Kara, rolled their eyes and said, “No”

“This isn’t fair, it’s two against one.”

Lena and Alex high fived and Kara stalked over to the couch. She wasn’t used to being on the sidelines, all her friends were here and right now she didn’t feel very super.

Her friends and family gathered around the bar in the kitchen and started to eat. Kara turned and walked towards the window, she felt, worthless.

Lena came over, carrying a plate of food, “Kara, darling are you okay?”

“I’m fine honey, I just feel kinda down, I’m not used to being on the sidelines.”

“Kar, you are Supergirl, you are perfect to me”

“And that Lee, means more to me than anything else.”, Kara smiled as she pulled Lena in for a kiss. Suddenly, there was an explosion, Kara started to change when Lena placed her hand on her shoulder and shook her head, “My turn Kara, do you trust me?”

Kara nodded, as Lena’s armor wrapped itself around her body.

Tempest launched through the window towards danger, and Supergirl was stuck on the sidelines. Alex stepped over and handed Kara her earpiece and microphone.

“DEO, this is Tempest, I am on-site, the explosion seems to be contained to one empty warehouse right off the Fisherman’s wharf”

“Tempest, scan the area, what do you see?”

“There are no life signs in the immediate area, but there is a large energy pulse about 150 yards north of the warehouse”

“Can you share the image through Harley’s interface?”

“Affirmative”

“Harley bring up the feed onto the TV in the living room please.”

“Coming up now Kara.”

“Tempest, scan the area where the explosion, is the energy signature the same?”

“Yes, do you recognize the signature.”

“That’s affirmative Tempest, it’s an interdimensional portal. Change your sensor array to measure a signal at the following frequency.” Kara enters a signal and sends it via Harley.

“DEO, I have a signal now, looks like 2 humanoid-shaped creatures about 12 feet tall, they look a little like gargoyles.”

“Tempest, those are Dominators, high energy, low intelligence troops, use your sonic cannons and your speed. Do not let them get ahold of you, I can’t remember how strong their claws are, but they were capable of holding down Superman and Supergirl.”, Kara said, slightly panicked “Tempest, this is a total assault, you have no choice, they will die, no matter how you take them down, you will cause their deaths. Are you okay with that?”

“Do I have a choice DEO?”

“No Tempest, I’m sorry, but no.”

“Affirmative DEO.”

“Do your thing, Tempest.”

Lena shot towards the aliens, who seemed surprised at the attack. The first was a breeze, her sonic cannon blasted the first alien square in the chest, and he dissolved. Even though she expected it, she still cringed. The next alien was expecting her and aimed his weapon and fired. Lena held her course though, trusting Kara’s technology and her armor. She threw a punch and the dominator blocked her first blow and swung at her, she ducked, and punch it where she thought the stomach was, then blasted up with a knee to his head, the dominator fell back, but snatched at her leg, dragging her down. “DEO, he has a grip, he’s got my ankle.”

“Lena, calm down, focus your sonic cannon into a full suit blast.”

“Kara, Kara, I’m scared.”

“Lena, you got this, you’ve got this, you are one of the strongest people I know, you can do this Tempest.”

Lena focused on Kara’s voice, and using the neural link, she fired her Sonic Blast through her entire suit of armor, causing the alien to scream and dissolve into a puddle.

She shot straight up then, out of the field of battle.

“Lena, are you okay?”

“I’m okay Kara, I’m sorry, I didn’t expect it to feel this way.”

“Lena, it’s okay honey, it should never feel good when you have to kill, I know you are good, this doesn’t make you bad, it doesn’t make you Lex.”

“Thank you, darling.”, Kara could hear Lena catching her breath on the other side of the microphone, “Kara, two more life forms coming through the second portal.”

“Identify, use sensor array.”

“Two human lifeforms, according to DEO records, they are from Earth 1, Barry Allen, the Flash and Sara Lance, White Canary.”

“Lena, they are on our side, I repeat they are friendlies. Approach, and identify as Kryptogirl.”

Lena landed about 20 feet from the Barry and Sara. Sara stepped forward, “Who the hell are you?”

“Per Supergirl’s instructions, Kryptogirl.”

“Well you’re not Kara, so who are you?”, Barry asked.

“I’m Tempest, I’m a friend of Supergirl.”

“Put me on speaker Lena.”

“Barry and Sara, it’s me, it’s Kara. Tempest is a friend, she is covering the city, I’m temporarily out of commission. Come by the apartment and I will explain everything, and you can tell me why two Dominators showed up just before you.”

Lena stepped forward and shook hands with both heroes. “Ms. Lance, I can carry you if you like?” Sara nodded and Lena lifted her gently off the ground and headed towards the apartment. Barry sped there at top speed, arriving several minutes before the girls. Lena flew in shortly thereafter, setting Sara down and then landing herself. Barry and Kara were hugging and when Sara saw Alex, she smiled. Kara introduced everyone, and Lena took a deep breath and released the Tempest armor, revealing herself once again to everyone.

“Barry and Sara, I would like to introduce you to my girlfriend and fellow heroine, Lena Luthor.”


	15. Keep Kara Safe

“Damn, the Dominators have come through already?”, Sara swore.

“Just two that we know of?”, Kara answered.

“Did they get away?”, Barry asked, “I can go look for them.”

“No, Tempest took them out?”

“You mean Lena? No offense.”, Sara said, “Those were shock troops, normally only really powerful metas can stand up to them.”

“Kara and I designed this armor.”, Lena got defensive.

“Lena, relax, I meant no offense, the shock troops just don’t care, so they blindly walk into battle. Not caring if you live or die gives you a huge advantage in the field.”

“Oh”, was all Lena could say, she knew one day she could die out in the field, but she still cared whether she made it home or not.

“Let’s start over, I’m Sara Lance, the White Canary.”, Sara reached out to shake Lena’s hand.

Lena took her hand and felt a true bond with the woman she had just been at odds with. “Lena Luthor, Tempest.”

“Hi I’m Barry, the Flash”

“Lena.”

“Do ya’ll mind if I grab something to eat?” Barry asked.

Everyone grabbed something quickly as he headed towards the bar.

“So, Sara, what is going on?”

“The Dominators have been hitting worlds throughout the Multiverse taking out military targets and some Metas. We figured they would come here since you and Kal both live on this Earth.”

“Kal’s off-planet right now, I don’t have a way to contact him.”

“Then that means they were after you Kara.”

“Kara, that means the alien that attacked you may have been a trap.”

Kara swore in Kryptonian and Lena turned, looked and said, “Language, Zhao.”

Kara blushed, “God you learn fast.”

“The swear words are easy Zhao, you need to calm down.”

“Is there something I should know about you two Sara asked?”

“Lena and I, we just recently, we are, uhm”

“As my lovely girlfriend was trying to say, we just started dating, so this is a little new to her.”

“Alex, you owe me 50 bucks!”, Sara yelled.

“Huh?”, Kara looked confused.

“Alex and I still talk from time to time, and she told me you were into this really hot brunette but was sure nothing would ever come of it. I told her she was wrong; you wouldn’t last another year.”

Kara blushed and stuck her tongue out at Alex who had walked over, $100 bill in hand, “Do you have change?”

“No, but I will give you something else.”, Sara said as she kissed Alex lightly on the lips.

“Oh”, Alex stammered, “Okay.”

As Alex walked away red-faced and smiling, Kara and Lena couldn’t stop giggling. “Does she have a girlfriend yet?”

“Yeah, big girl, named the DEO.”, she answered as Sara’s face fell then lightened up again.

“So, if I am a target, they will be back.”, Kara said matter of factly.

“Kara, hon, you are the biggest target they have gone for.”, Sara said. “In my experience with the Time Hunters, you are the most powerful Kryptonian we have ever encountered.”

“Me?”

“Yes you, I have met you with no powers, just smarts, no smarts just powers and just about anything in between, even that scary you from Earth X.”

“What makes me so different?”

“Two things, one, your physiology in this universe is different so you process sunlight more efficiently making you stronger and faster. The second thing is your family, they are what drives you to do what you do, to be the best you that you can be, and because of that you are more focused and you don’t normally act rashly in a situation.”

Lena beamed as Kara stood a little taller and held her head up higher.

Sara then whispered into Lena’s ear, “She also has you, Lena.”

Lena blushed as Kara smiled at her, having heard what Sara whispered.

“So, what’s the plan, Sara?”

“How much more time do you need to recover?”

“At least 24 hours. If I stay under the lamps at the DEO, maybe a little faster.”

“Harley, is it possible to set up a Sunroom in Kara’s lab?”

“Affirmative”

“Set it up, Harley.”

“Yes Lena, I am beginning the process now, all materials are available in my current inventory.”

“Let me know when it’s ready.”

“Yes, Lena.”

“What was that?” Sara asked.

“Kara’s AI.”

“Wait, what? Kara designed an AI?”

“Yes.”

“Damn the hot brunette got a hot nerdy blonde.”

“Yes. Yes, I did.”, Lena smiled.

“Alright so if we give you 18 to 24 hours, you will be back at full strength?”

“That seems about right.”  
“We will bring everyone, maybe we can hold them off, or drive them off and keep you safe.”

“Who is everyone?”

“As many Metas as we can get here. We will need the DEO as well.”

“Alex!”, Kara called out.

“Yeah Kar, what’s up?”

“We have a bigger problem than just two Dominators.”

“Okay, explain”

All three women explain what is going on, Alex starts to tense up since Kara is the one in the most danger, but Sara, takes her hand, interlacing her fingers with Alex’s. Alex takes a deep breath and relaxes a bit. Kara sees the effect that Sara has on Alex, smiles and reaches for Lena’s hand.

“Kara’s sunroom is prepared.”, Harley announced.

“Okay Darling, downstairs now, time to get you charged up.”

“We are headed to the old DEO headquarters in the desert Kara. There is plenty of space for everyone, and it will keep the Aliens out of the city.”

“Alex, I am going to stay here with Kara until we know they are attacking, okay?”

Alex understood what Lena was doing, making sure Kara didn’t feel alone in this situation. “Makes sense to me Lena, keep your comm channels open okay?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Alright everyone, party’s over, everyone is on duty effective immediately. Put out a full recall to all troops and have them report to DEO desert headquarters A.S.A.P.”

Everyone, including Sara and Barry, headed out as well, Sara held back with Alex. She looked at Kara and smiled. “Kara, we are supporting and protecting you, I know this isn’t your usual role, but please, don’t leave that sunroom unless you are 100%, okay?”

“Okay Sara.”, Kara answered, “I promise.”

“Lena, watch our girl.”, Alex said as she hugged them both.

“Always Alex.”, Lena answered.

Alex smiled one more time at them both then took Sara’s hand and headed out.

2 hours later, DEO desert headquarters.

Everyone had been briefed, and all the troops were ready and armed. There were so many Metas and Masks walking around that you could have mistaken the control room for a comic book convention.

“A Dominator flagship just exited the moons orbit. They should make Earthfall in the next 10 hours based on their current speed.

Alex clicked the comms for Lena and Kara letting them know.

While Lena was talking to Alex, Kara spoke to Harley, “Harley, have my nanites both in my system and in my necklace absorb their maximum limit in yellow sunlight, and increase sunlight by 25%.”

“There is a possibility that you will be overpowered, Kara.”

“I know Harley, but I might need it tomorrow.”

“Yes Kara, be careful Kara.”

“Harley?”

“I am worried about my family Kara”

“You are learning emotional responses?”

“Yes, I believe so.”

“Wow.”

“Please get some rest Kara, I believe tomorrow may be very dangerous.”

Lena got off the comms with Alex and sat down beside Kara.

“Get some rest, Lee.”

“I want to be here for you Kara.”

“Lee, Zhao, I understand, but you need to be rested for tomorrow, it’s going to be dangerous.”  
“Harley, limit exposure over Lena, focus lights on me only.”

“Adjustments complete if Lena moves the light will track away from her.”

“Thank you, Harley.”

“You are welcome, Kara.”

The two superheroines laced their fingers together and listened to each other breathe as they fell asleep.


	16. Battleground

Lena had joined everyone at DEO headquarters, it seemed that command had been given over to Oliver Queen, the Arrow from Earth 1. 

“Oliver is a natural tactician Lena, that’s why we are allowing him to lead.”

“Does he know how important Kara is?”

“Lena, he likes Kara, he knows her, he won’t let anything happen to her. I know you are stressed and worried, but Lena, we are all here to make sure nothing happens to Kara.”

Lena took a deep breath, centering herself, “Okay.”, she said softly.

“Dominator ship has entered the atmosphere, they are currently on course to settle directly over our current location, everyone to your stations. Heavy weapons and defense measures are being deployed. I repeat, everyone to your stations.”

“Alright everyone, saddle up, time to take the fight them, as we discussed, anyone with the ability to fly is responsible for their air forces. All ground forces, you know what you have to do, remember these creatures will die if you are not comfortable with that, leave now.”, the Arrow ordered.

No one left, many were from other earths that had lost their Kryptonian defenders when the Dominators attacked, this wasn’t just a protection mission for them, this was payback.

Alex, Sara, and Lena gathered around the comm board and contacted Kara.

Kara was sitting under her sun lamps with a multi-monitor system so that she could be involved in the battle, even though she couldn’t be there physically, Oliver wanted her to help, her ability to read the field made her an invaluable asset behind the scenes, she could guide the flyers towards targets.

“Hey sis, what are your readings?”, Alex was in director mode.

“Kryptonite levels at 7 percent, the system should be cleared in 2 hours.”, Harley answered.

“I’m fine Alex, not happy, but fine.”, Kara frowned. Her eyes flashed red.

“Temper Zhao.”, Lena spoke. Watching as Kara took a deep breath trying to calm herself.

“Kara, please keep yourself safe, love you.”

“Kara, everything will be okay, I’ll keep Alex safe.”

“You better, you’ll never forgive yourself otherwise.”  
Sara laughed and Kara smiled. Lena and Alex looked at one another trying to figure out how they could laugh at a time like this.

“Sara, thank you.”

“Kara, when all this is done, we need to talk.”

“Sara?”

“After this is over, okay Kara?”

“Of course, whatever you need Sara.”

Finally, Kara was looking at Lena. “You look fantastic Tempest. Remember you turn tighter than they do, and your weapons system can be controlled by…”

“Kara stop, I’m scared, I’ve never done anything like this before.”

“Lena, Zhao, you will be amazing. Just remember what you can do, it’s okay to be scared, we all are, even Oliver. It’s the nature of what we do. Some of us hide it with humor, some get quiet and others just get angry. You’ll be fine, I have faith in you, Lena.”

“Thank you, Kara, I love you, I won’t let you down.”

“You never could Lee, I love you beautiful, now go show them what you can do.”

“Sara, watch our girls.”

“Comm check everyone?”, Oliver yelled.

Everyone checked in, “Kara, you have good comms?”

“Affirmative Ollie, be safe.”

“Watch our backs Supergirl.”

“Gotcha Arrow.”

The heroes from all over the Multiverse headed up to face the Dominators, no one paused, even the rookies. The airborne heroes shot through the opened roof of the DEO, they shot skyward, heading directly for the incoming ship. The DEO troops locked down the command center and lit up their weapons. Alex and Sara were the last to the surface, both stone-faced and looking dangerous when Sara paused and looked to Alex.

“Sara, are you okay?”

“I am, I just need to say something before this starts. Alex, I think I have finally found my home. I have been wandering for so long, but now, when I see you, I want to settle down, I want to stop drifting, I want to stay here.”

Alex looked at the beautiful woman in front of her and saw something very few people ever got to see, not Canary, not a member of the League of Assassins, but Sara Lance. She smiled and pulled Sara to her, and for once Alex took charge, kissing her, probing for a boundary, letting Sara know that she was welcome, not only to this world but to her heart.

The kiss ended, both women breathless, “Is that a yes?”, Sara breathed heavily.

“Yes.”, then Alex kissed her lightly and took her hand and headed forward. Oliver was in front of them, watching, and smiled as they interlocked their fingers.

The flying heroes were about a mile out when the Dominator’s attack craft launched, but Kara caught the launch and warned the group they were coming. “Group A, go high, Group B down, split on my count,” Kara watched the approach closely, “3, 2, 1, now!”

The groups split, just as the laser fire erupted, one hawk winged hero paused just a moment, but his feathers were only singed. The heroes concentrated their attack as soon as the Dominator force flew past them. Not a single Dominator survived that initial attack. Lena personally took out 3 fighters.

“Good job team, no one gets cocky, the next round is coming soon and that trick won’t work twice.”, Kara said, “Ollie, you have troops dropping 500 yards on your left flank, DEO can do more damage than your team at this time.”

“You heard Supergirl DEO, light them up.”

The DEO waited until the Dominator force was 100 yards from them, trapped in a wedge of troops and then fired a full barrage. Dominator forces were caught completely unaware since they deemed human resistance worthless. A cheer went up as the last of the Dominators fell back.

“Everyone focus, that was a test run, now they know what they are facing, they will come full force.”

“That’s affirmative, Ollie, 4 air groups and 2 ground assault units coming now, full left flank attack, the DEO will need support. Air groups, split into 4 units, 1 group give aerial support to the ground units, groups 2, 3 and 4 prepare for the next round of attacks.”

The Dominator assault force hit efficiently on the ground, but they were not prepared for Kara’s force field generators, they couldn’t get a shot in. The heroes and the DEO were behind the shield, firing at selected targets, never moving from their assigned positions. “Kara, it’s working, your shields are holding up.”

Kara was too busy watching the air groups and watching the field, she would celebrate if this ended their favor. She watched as two heroes fell, tracking their vitals, and guiding the medical team to them. Her eyes followed everyone on the field, but she always knew where Alex, Sara, and Lena were. “Ollie, new assault group coming up from the rear, 200 yards out, Alex and Sara’s group is in the best position.”

“Sara, show them what Canary is capable of.”, Oliver hadn’t let anyone know that Sara had been mutated during her travels through time and space, and had truly gained her Canary cry.

“Gotcha Ollie, Kara, let me know we all our troops are behind me.”

“Okay Sara, the Dominators are 150 yards out, our troops are headed towards you.”

“125 yards, 10 more troops.”

“100 yards, last troop is behind you. NOW!”

Sara let loose with a sonic cry that stopped the Dominators in their tracks, more than ¾’s of their number were destroyed. The other heroes and DEO troops waited till she was done, then opened fire. They wiped the floor with the Dominator troops.

In the air, the battle was a little closer, Kara could guide, but she couldn’t control the Dominator ships. She watched two of Lena’s group go down to a large fighter, then heard Lena tell Harley to increase the shields and shift 15% more power to her boosters. “Lena?”, was all Kara could get out before her Luthor shot forward and the speed of sound and blasted towards and then through the ship. She almost yelled out but held back because they were on public comms.

“Kara, current Kryptonian levels are at zero, you are cleared for combat.”, Harley spoke.

“Thank Rao.”, Kara sighed, “Lena, the kryptonite is out of my system.”

“Thank God.”

“Wait, they are sending an assault force towards the city. Ollie, there is an assault force headed towards National City, I have to go.”

“Go, Kara, we got this.”

“Harley, track the battle, I have to go.”

“Be careful Kara.”

Kara tapped the charm on her necklace and was in the air before her cape and boots finished forming. 

“Kara, 20 Dominators just landed in the park outside of L Corp, there are 10 police officers there, pinned down, 2 injured.”

“Got it Harley.”, she poured on the speed and landed between the dominators and police in the park.

“Officer is your injured stable?”, she yelled.

“Yes Supergirl, but we can’t seem to get a shot in, they have us pinned down.”

“These are shock troops, anywhere you hit them is fine, aim from low, radio it in.”

One of the cops took a shot from under his car, hitting one of the Dominators in the ankle, the creature went down and he immediately shot it twice more, dissolving the creature.

“Great shot!”, Kara cried as she took out 5 of the aliens with her heat vision. The cops cheered and fired at the remaining aliens. The battle was over in seconds.

Kara ran over to the injured officers, one was shot in the leg, not life-threatening, the other had a hole in her side. Kara x-rayed her and noticed damage to her kidney. “Dammit”, she thought, then remembered, she had a nanite capsule on her. “Water!”, she cried out. One of the officers handed her a bottle, she gave it and the capsule to the injured officer. “Take this.”, it will help repair the damage. After the officer swallowed the capsule, Kara lifted her, “I’m taking her to the hospital.”

“Go Supergirl and thank you.”

“No thanks necessary, it's my city too.”, then she took off taking the police officer to the hospital. When she arrived, she told the nurse to contact Jess, and give the code word KD1959, and she would get the data on the nanites that were currently working inside the woman. Then she was back in the air.

“Lena, I just gave the hospital some of the data on my nanites. I had to give my tablet to one of the downed officers in the city.”

“It’s okay Kara, Jess will scrub the info, no one will know till you are ready.”

“How’s it going there.”  
“We are doing better than they are.”

Onboard the alien ship, the commander realized that Supergirl kept focusing on three certain human units. He decided at that moment to use his literal big guns.

“Alert, the command ship is building up its power, focus seems to be a weapon on the bottom of the ship. Air assault headed towards the city”

“Ollie, get everyone underground now!”, Kara screamed as she flew towards the air assault.

“Everyone fall back underground, now.”

Lena was acting as rear guard, so was Sara and Alex. Oliver was inside the doorway waiting so he could drop the blast doors. Out of nowhere, a blast rocked the entrance, causing the doors to fall. “Kara, the girls, they are trapped outside.”

Kara was battling the aircraft, laser vision, kicks, and punches taking them out as quickly as possible. She was moving so fast the enemy couldn’t even target her. 

“Lena, the ship will fire in less than 2 seconds.”, Harley actually sounded panicked.

Lena flew towards Alex and Sara and they all looked at each other. “Harley, emergency protocol, Absolution. Sara, I need you to scream as soon as they fire, can you do that?”

“Whatever you need Lena.”

“Alex, get down behind Sara and cover your ears. Lena did the same. “As soon as they fire Sara, focus your scream on the two crystal at the top of our cover.”

Kara took out the last two ships and turned towards the desert, seeing a huge beam of energy fire. “No!”, she screamed, “Lena!”

The beam struck and Sara screamed, they were rocked, and the scream charged the forcefield, but the beam was strong enough to push them down into the earth, effectively burying them. Kara landed less than a second later, but it was gone, Lena’s heartbeat, it was gone. She screamed and focused her heat vision on the Alien troops coming towards her, wiping them from existence. Then she released the solar energy from her suit, supercharging her body. Then she launched herself towards the alien ship. She stood outside the bridge, staring at the creatures within. She focused all her anger into the most powerful beam of energy she could muster, slicing the ship nearly in half, causing it to fall from the sky. Then before it could hit, she blasted to the ground and fired again and again until the ship was vaporized.

Oliver approached, but Kara’s body was so hot, no one could get closer than 20 feet. She turned and looked at Oliver, tears streaming down her face, “Lena?”, then she collapsed.  
Twelve feet behind Kara, the ground erupted, and Alex, Sara, and Lena emerged. They all saw Kara’s form lying on the ground and rushed to her. The heat was still powerful, but they couldn’t stop. Suddenly, Frost was there, cooling Kara down, Alex checked her, she was breathing. Lena was on the verge of tears. “What happened?” 

Oliver answered, “She saved us all Lena, she blew the ship to pieces.”

“Was she glowing Oliver?”, Alex asked.

“Yes, like a small sun.”

“She supernova’d Lena, she will be okay, but no powers for a couple of weeks.”

“Thank Rao, but why?”

“You’re why Lena, she couldn’t hear your heartbeat. She thought you were gone.”

“Oh my god, my poor Zhao.”

“We need to get her home, now, under the lamps.”

“My suit is gone, Alex.”

“Negative Lena, Tempest has arrived.”

“Harley?”

“You have a few backup suits thanks to Kara, she had them made before the battle started.”

Lena stepped into her suit, lifted Kara, and zoomed home. Once there, she settled her into the Sunroom. Sara and Alex arrived an hour later. Alex checked Kara’s vitals, everything was good, except she didn’t seem to be waking up.”

“Alex?”

“She will wake up Lena, but her power output was incredible. News drones caught the blast and you could see it from the International Space Station.”

“What?”

Alex flipped on the news, and sure enough there was an image of Kara going full supernova with the headline, ‘Supergirl Saves the World.’ Then the picture changed, and you could see the light burst from space.

“Wow.”

Kara’s vitals started to jump. “She’s having a nightmare.”, Alex said, then remembered Astra, “Harley call up Astra file 02.”

Astra formed, “Hello Ms. Danvers.”

“Astra, please sing Kara’s lullaby from Krypton.”

“Very well”, the hologram stated, then started singing. The effect was immediate, Kara settled down and went back to sleep.

“Harley, if Kara’s vitals spike, and her REM pattern changes, please start the lullaby again.”

“Yes Alex, I understand.”

“Lena, we are going to go up and take a shower, we need food, what do you want?”

Lena thought for a second, “Pizza and Potstickers and donuts”

Alex smiled, “I’ll order when I get up there.”

30 minutes later, Sara and Alex came back downstairs. “Hey, Lena.”, Sara said, “Go upstairs hon, we will watch her, beside the food should show up while you are up there.”

“Okay”

Lena was in the shower when Kara started to stir. She came to, “Alex”, the turned, “Sara”. “Where’s Lena?”, her heart rate started to spike. “Oh Rao, I lost her, she’s gone?”

Suddenly Lena appeared in the doorway, wearing a towel. “Kara, I’m right here.”

“Zhao, you’re okay?”

“Yes, Tempest saved us, combined with Sara’s canary cry.”, Lena explained, “We overcharged the crystals, and it made the forcefield strong enough to resist the blast.”

“Thank Rao, I thought you were gone, all of you, I lost it, I lost my temper, did I hurt anyone, is everyone okay.”

“Kara slow down, you saved the planet”, Sara said. “We had some injuries, but your tech saved everyone and then you kinda took down the whole ship.”

“I supernova’d, didn’t I Alex.?”  
“Yeah sis, it was impressive as hell.”

“How long?”

“Two weeks minimum.”

“Wow, I blew myself out.”

“Wait a minute,”, Lena interrupted, then swore in three languages Kara spoke, one she didn’t and Kryptonian.

“Lee, language.”

“You are discussing this like it isn’t a big deal.”

“Lena I’m okay, the enemy is defeated, and my family is together.”

“But you could have died.”

“Lee, I have faced my mortality several times, I made peace with it.”

“But I haven’t, I just got you, I want you around for a long, long time Kara Zor-El.”

“Lee, I’m here now, and I will be by your side for as long as Rao allows. I promise to always be there for you.”, then she got up off the bed and walked over to Lena, gathered her in her arms and just held her.

“Your food is being delivered.”

“Pizza and potstickers meet you upstairs.”, Alex said as she and Sara headed up.

Kara released Lena, who looked up at her Super and simply smiled. “I love you, Kara.”

Kara looked into those beautiful green eyes, “And I love you, Lena.”


	17. Girls Night

The four women were sitting there eating and talking. Finally, they settled down, and Kara looked towards her sister and Sara and saw how close they were. “Hey Sara, you said you wanted to talk? What’s up?”

“Kara, I want to stay here. I want to try and make a go of it with Alex.”

“Okay, well I am all for it, but you don’t need my permission.”

“Kara, I feel as if I do. Alex and I have always been close, but you and I have been friends for quite some time, and I don’t want to come between you and Alex. Your friendship is incredibly important to me, you helped me with some of my personal demons, even Nyssa’s death.”

“Sara, you are a member of my family, and it would be an honor to have you join us here for as long as you wish to be here.”

Sara released a breath she hadn’t been aware she was holding and jumped forward to hug Kara. Then she looked to Lena, “Lena, is this okay with you as well?”

“Sara I would be honored, it gives me a chance to get closer to Kara’s family, and after watching you today, I can only imagine what I can learn from you.”

Alex took everything in, realizing that Sara was serious, she was staying, “So you are going to stay, for me?”

Sara turned and looked at Alex, and once again Alex felt her heart skip a beat, then they leaned in and kissed each other.

“So that’s settled, now where are you going to live?”

“Oh shit!”

Kara laughed, “Sara, there is a two-bedroom apartment right down the hall from this one, you can stay there as long as you want.”

“Really? Kara are you sure?”

“Of course. It’s what family does.”

And I just texted Winn at the DEO, so you have a job as well, “Welcome to the DEO?”

“Oh God, I am going to be that woman, dating my boss.”

“Actually no, I recently stepped down as director of the DEO, I want to be in the field, so I have handed command over to Lucy Lane.”

“Alex?”

“Kara, I want to be with Sara, and face it, as director, I was neglecting my duties as your sister and Lena’s friend. I want a life, and you three are my life. I have been sitting here listening to you three, and I realized how much I have missed since I took over command. I need to focus on different priorities, and right now, this beautiful blonde is my biggest priority.”

Sara beamed; she had made the right choice. Now for the next one. “I’m going to go back to being just the Canary. Back to the black.”

“Really? Why?”

“I feel like staring over, but I will need a bike and some help with weapons and such.”

“Fortunately for you, your girlfriend’s sister is a mechanical engineer and she is dating a genius,” Alex said.

“What ya need Sara?”

Sara thought for a minute, “I need a new suit and a staff.”

“We can do that; don’t you think Kara?”

“Oh yeah, definitely, something along the lines of your old costume?”

“No, I want something different, not biker chic. And a mask for sure.”

“Oooohhhh, how about an electric bike, Lena has some great ideas for an electric motor that I think I can make go using Kryptonian power crystals.”

“Is this what you do, look for projects on my servers.”

Kara had the decency to blush, “Well I will be under contract, and it was in your maybe file.”

“Well Lena, you did let her have access, you knew she was going to geek out.”

All Lena heard was that Kara was going to be working for her. “Did I hear correctly, you are coming to work for L Corp.”

“Yes, I am resigning from CatCo effective Monday. But I have a condition.”

“Okay? What is it?”

“Any medical advances I help with, I don’t want any financial rewards from, that way the cost can be kept down so people can afford them. “Kara answered, “Is that okay, Lee?”

All three women looked at her, and Kara blushed, “Did I do something wrong?”

“No Darling, you are just so amazing.”

“Sis, you just passed up the ability to get incredibly rich.”

“As long as I can afford to eat, I don’t need a lot.”

“Kara, honey, I will never let you go without, I promise.”

“Can I work from here, and can Harley help?”

“Yes, that is easy to do, since Jess already set you up with your secure internet access. What about assistants?”

“I have to hire them, right?”

“Normal contract says yes.”

“Alex, can I have Veronica, Peter, and Wanda? I will pay any difference out of my L Corp salary.”

“I will have to clear it through Lucy, but I don’t see any problems with it, and you know your DEO duties can’t be put off.”

“Oh, I know, but most of my projects with the DEO will work with what I am thinking about working on. Except for the shield tech, I am signing that over to Lucy and the DEO.”

“Are you sure?”

“Oh yeah, I trust Lucy.”

“Alright, I will have the contract drawn up Monday.”

Lena smiled, watching as Kara’s brain worked on multiple problems at once, thinking, re-organizing and then handing out solutions, the girl was amazing.

“I have a question, Kara?”

“Shoot Sara.”

“Why Harley?”

“Huh?”

“Well I have known you for a while, and I know you ride, but I have only ever seen you on a Ducati, why name her after a bike?”

“I can answer that, Harley isn’t named after the motorcycle, Kara hates Harley Davidsons, they are too loud for her. Harley is named for Kara’s therapist from when she first came to live with my family, Dr. Harleen Quinzel helped her through some of the trauma she went through, Kara never forgot her.”

“How adorable,” Lena said. 

Alex picked that moment to yawn, the adrenaline from the day was finally wearing off, and all the women decided, it was time for bed.

“Alex, you and Sara stay here tonight, okay?”, this from Lena.

“That sounds good, we can crash out here.”

“Tomorrow, I will take you and Sara out to get some clothes and furniture.”

“Lena, no, you don’t have to do that.”

“Sara, just give up now, you are not going to win this argument, she will just hire a lawyer and you will lose and then she will pick out your furniture all by herself.”

“I’m not that bad.”

“Mmmhmmm, Lee, you are one of the most beautiful, smart and stubborn women I have ever met, and I love you dearly, but once you set your mind to something, that’s it, you will get it.”

“It’s worked for me so far, I got you didn’t I.”

Kara simply smiled, “Did you get me, or did I get you?”

Lena stopped at that, happy that she wasn’t sure which way it had gone, just that she and Kara were together and happy.


	18. The Game Begins

** _A family can develop only with a loving woman as its center._ **

Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel  
  


It had been four days since the Dominators had attacked and Kara was working in her lab, modifying Lena’s engine design to work with the custom motorcycle frame she was building.

Lena was working at the DEO, running her multinational corporation from Kara’s office there, so that Lex couldn’t track her. Kara, Lena, and Winn had already fixed Tempest so the armor couldn’t be tracked.

“Incoming call from Lena,” Harley announced.

“On speaker, please,” Kara grinned.

“Hello, darling, how are you feeling?” Lena asked, “How’s your cold?”

Kara sneezed, and rolled her eyes, “I hate this Lee, being on the sidelines is not my cup of tea. And my body can’t make up its mind if I’m hot or cold, so I keep having to take off my shirt.”

On the other end of the phone, Lena’s mind went blank for a moment as she grasped the concept of a shirtless Kara. She heard Kara’s snort on the line and she asked, “what’s so funny, Ms. Danvers?”

“Your heartrate Lee, my minor powers are coming back first, so I could hear your heartbeat speed up when I mentioned taking off my shirt,” Kara laughed again, but it turned into a cough.

“You sound terrible, how about soup and sandwiches for supper tonight?” Lena’s concern wrapping Kara in a warm embrace.

“That sounds good, but that is not why you called?” Kara’s voice changed to her Supergirl tone.

“You’re right, I am also calling as your boss, I was wondering how the electric motor was coming,” Lena explained professionally

”I solved the battery issue, and the charging issue, what I can’t work out is the torque problem.” Kara rested her hand on her chin as she looked over the plans and answered Lena’s question.

“How long have you been working on this?” Lena asked suddenly concerned, “you are supposed to be resting too.”

Kara coughed and answered in a whisper, “since you left this morning.”

“I heard that Kara Danvers, bed now,” Alex yelled through the connection.

“Lee, you traitor, you--” Kara stuttered “You tricked me.”

“Actually this was my idea, Kara,” Sara’s soft voice spoke over the speaker. “I had a feeling if I gave you a problem to solve you you wouldn’t rest.”

“This is not fair,” Kara mumbled.

“Kara, based on your current readings, my database recommends a nap of approximately 2.57 hours,” Harley’s voice spilled out of the speakers.

“Really Harley, you too!” Kara pouted, listening as the women on the other end of the line laughed at her. “Fine!” Kara trudged upstairs and laid down on the couch.

“Kara, we are just trying to make sure you get well, darling.” Lena’s smile came through the speaker, making Kara smile.

“I know Lee, I just hate leaving a problem…” she yawned.

“Under the blanket, honey.” Lena’s sweet voice reminded her.

“Okay Lee, love you,” Kara answered as she started to close her eyes.

“Love you too Kara.” Lena smiled, ‘Harley, disconnect the call, set alarm for 2.5 hours please.”

“Yes Lena, disconnecting call.” Harley disconnected the call and set her internal alarm.

* * *

Kara slept soundly for about 2 hours when suddenly, the thought hit her right between the eyes. She sat straight up on the couch and started looking around for her phone. She shook her blonde hair, closed her eyes to focus, and remembered, “Harley, dial Lena please.”

“Kara?” Lena asked, looking at the clock on her computer.

“I’ve got Lee, I can charge the bike and increase the power. I figured it out, it came while I was asleep, I need something from my lab, can you get it, should I send Alex?” Kara paused for about a tenth of a second, “Lee, I said I got it.”

“Kara, darling, slow down,” Lena smiled a bit. “What did you get?”

“The crystals Lena, like your bracelets, one cut correctly could power and recharge the motor. You could apply it to racing and a bike for Sara. And if cut small and correctly, we could apply for day to day use. No fuel, clean-running and inexpensive.” Kara smiled, trying to wake up.

“But Kar, you only have a few crystals.” Lena hated playing devil’s advocate, but Kara had a tendency to act before thinking a problem through from time to time.

“Nonsense Lee, I can grow more crystal.” Kara sounded like a teacher, “I can show you how.”

“Wait, Kara, slow down, you can grow the crystals?” Lee asked, trying to clarify what she had heard.

“Of course you can Lee, they aren’t naturally occurring, they were developed in a lab, Kal-El’s mom developed the science.” Kara paused, thinking about what she was saying, “Oh--sorry Lee, I’m talking like you know everything that happened on Krypton.” 

Lena smiled over the phone, “Kara, darling, I’m not the least bit put out, now I know how everyone feels when Winn and I start discussing things.”

On the other end, Kara was smiling as well, “Well I knew, and you are really cute when you get all nerdy.”

Lena blushed and heard her email ding, she clicked on the message icon and felt her blood go cold.

To: L.Luthor@lcorp.com

Hiding behind the Kryptonian does not seem like your style, dear sister.

How is she feeling?

Love,

Lex

Kara could hear Lena’s heartbeat increasing, “Lee, what’s going on, what’s wrong?”

“Kara, it’s Lex, he knows we are working together,” Lena responded, breathing hard, “Tempest and Supergirl, he knows. And he knows you are powerless.”

“Lee, calm down honey, I’m home, I’m safe. I’m not going out okay, no patrols, nothing until my powers come back.” Kara paused, then continued, “I promise Zhao.”

“I’m calling it a day Kara, I’m coming home right now.” Lena snapped.

“Okay, Lee.” Kara responded, “I’m not going to complain.”

“Sorry, Kar. He has a way of getting under my skin.” Lena took a deep breath, “I’m headed out now.”

“Love you, Lee, be careful.” Kara smiled.

“Love you too, Darling,” Lena smiled slightly as she started to gather up her things.

Kara immediately contacted Lucy and let her know what was going on. She might be a contract employee for L Corp, but as Supergirl, she had to let the DEO know what was going on.

Kara; ‘Hey Luce, Lex emailed Lee again.’

Lucy; ‘Got Winn at L Corp today working with Jess, they are setting up programs to track.’

Kara; ‘Have I mentioned what a great friend you are.’

Lucy; ‘She means a lot to you Kar, so that means she’s part of the family.’

Kara; ‘Thanks Luce, see you for game night?’

Lucy; ‘I’ll be there, now shouldn’t you be resting?’

Kara; ‘Does everyone know I am sick?’

Lucy; ‘Of course, between Alex and Sara, the whole base is aware.’

Kara; ‘Ugh...Love ya’

Lucy; ‘Ahahaha, love ya too, now rest.’

* * *

As Kara was completing her text to Lucy, Lena was finishing locking down her files and her computer. She was locking the door to Kara’s office when Alex approached.

“Headed out kind of early, Lee?” Alex asked.

“Another email, Alex,” Lena answered. “He knows about Kara being without her powers.”

“Lee, her apartment is secure, and there is enough anti-tracking equipment on your armor to make Batman jealous, okay?” Alex said, placing her hand on Lena’s shoulder.

At the joke, Lena tried to smile, “Alex, I can’t lose her, or any of you because of him, I came to National City--I came here because of Kara, because I thought, if people could see me working side by side with Supergirl, they would accept that my--,” she stopped.

“You thought that people would see your family as a force for good. Lena, it isn’t your name that defines you, it’s what you do, it’s who you are. The Luthor name does not deserve you, Lena,” Alex smiled. “Now, go home and make my sister rest, please.”

“Oh Rao, I almost forgot, she needs a crystal, for the engine.” Lena stumbled, “the solution came while she was sleeping.”

“Did she give you cutting instructions?” Alex laughed.

“No.” Lena sighed.

“I’ll text her. She becomes a bit of the absent-minded professor when she gets an idea in her head.” Alex laughed.

“Thank you, Alex, for everything.” Lena smiled, then walked to Kara’s exit and whispering Tempest, she felt her armor form around her and launched into the tube.

* * *

No sooner did she get out of the tube then the trouble alert went off in her ear. She scanned the immediate area and saw an alert from DEO agents being attacked on the northside of town. "Let's go, Harley," Lena said through clenched teeth, as she shot towards the danger. "DEO, Tempest is inbound, advise on your situation."

“Tempest, thank God, this is Alpha unit, we are pinned down, repeat we are pinned down in an alley, 200 yards from the intersection of 3rd and Avenue A. There is a twelve-man CADMUS team assaulting an alien bar, they have us pinned between the alley exit and the door of the bar,” Lena heard through her coms.

“Any Meta’s?” Lena asked, hoping for a negative.

“Affirmative, one Meta. Supergirl calls him Slag. He throws plasma, but our shields are holding him back, but we can't get a clean shot.” The communications person responded, “Backup can’t get here for fifteen minutes Tempest, accident blocking route.”

"I'm on my way, be there in five," Lena yelled through the coms. She shot straight up, adjusting her trajectory. "Harley, contact Kara."

"Affirmative, contacting Kara," Harley responded.

“Hey Lee, everything okay?” Kara answered through her coms.

“Alpha team is cornered, CADMUS team and a Meta you call Slag?” Lena filled her girlfriend in as she reached the apex of her climb.

"Glass jaw, recharges in 10-15 seconds, shields should hold up without a problem, your armor is heat resistant," Kara recited.

"Thank you, darling," Lena smiled. "Harley adjusts power for close combat, we want to land behind the CADMUS units. Adjust power to shield."

“Be careful Lee,” Kara huffed, missing the action again, then she sneezed.

“Bless you,” Lee smiled behind her mask.

* * *

Two minutes later, Tempest landed in the Alleyway. Slag turned and saw the heroine walking towards him and through two plasmas bolts at her, only to watch them sizzle against her shield and fall to the ground.

“Oh shit!” The huge Meta gasped.

Behind her mask, Lena smiled. The big guy approached her and Lee spoke over her coms, "okay guys, I've got the big one, you take out the shooters." She got two clicks from the members of the Alpha team and turned her complete attention to Slag.

The big Meta lumbered towards Lena and took a quick swing. Lena ducked and took a quick step back, then shot forward with a punch that Slag blocked easily.

“You’re not the fighter she is Tempest,” Slag smiled. “Your punches are sloppy.”

Lena gritted her teeth, “Harley increase speed by a factor of three please.”

Lena led with a left, then followed with a right, both of which were easily blocked. “Dammit,” she swore into her mask.

Suddenly Slag was all over her and all she could do was block, luckily she had Harley to help with that. Lena was realizing that while she was okay against human targets, she was definitely outclassed when it came to fighting Metas, especially ones with fighting experience.

Then she found herself wrapped in Slag’s arms, and he was squeezing. Her proximity alarms were going nuts, but her armor was holding up fine. She heard Slag whisper, “Mr. Luthor says hello Tempest, says you should watch your friend really close.”

Lena panicked a bit, then remembered Kara was at their apartment, safe. Then she reacted completely by instinct and lifted her knee into Slag’s crotch. She watched as his mouth and eyes opened wide and his grip relaxed. She shot back out of his grasp, and then, adjusting her speed by a factor of five punched him in the jaw. Slag stood and stared at her for a moment, then his eyes rolled back and his body collapsed into a heap on the ground in front of her.

The Alpha team had taken down all but two of the CADMUS shooters and Lena placed a stun bolt into the back of each, dropping them. The team leader approached, "Thanks, Tempest."

“Do you record all incidents?” Lena asked, “I’m sorry, you’re welcome, he said something, I know I got it, but I’m curious if you recorded it as well.”

“We didn’t get a clear voice recording of your encounter, Tempest,” the team leader admitted.

Behind her mask, Lena breathed a sigh of relief, at least they didn’t hear the threat to Kara.

“We will take care of the incident reports, thanks again for the backup Tempest,” the Team l leaders said one more time.

“Thanks, I’ll be around if you need me,” Lena reminded the man, smiling at her mask.

Lena launched into the sky once again, “Harley conference Lucy, Alex and Sara please.”

“Dialing,” Harley responded.

All three women responded, “Lex is trying to use Kara to lure me out.”

“He can’t get to her at home Lena,” Alex reminded her.

“We aren’t going to let him have either of you Lena,” Lucy smiled into the phone. She was beginning to understand why Kara always saw the best in Lena.

Sara spoke next, “We are all close to her Lee, he has to go through all of us to get her.”

“That’s what I’m worried about,” Lena whispered.

“Lee, we are a team, a family, don’t do anything without letting us know, okay,” Sara pleaded.

“As soon as we find him, we will deal with him as a group,” Lucy promised.

“Okay,” Lena sighed, as she sped to her and Kara’s apartment.

* * *

Across town at L Corp, Jess and Winn were installing software into the servers, well Winn was, Jess was keeping track of where each one was installed and what is tracked.

“So explain this to me again,” Jess pondered.

“Okay, so this one, it tracks false signals, so if he is sending the emails through multiple servers, we can figure out which one it originated at,” Winn explained. “This one, it reads the message, makes sure the same person is typing each one, although knowing Lex, he probably has a robot doing it for him.”

“So all this is to help Lena?” Jess questioned.

“Yeah, she is really important to Kara, so she is really important to all of us,” Winn smiled. 

“And Kara’s important because she’s Supergirl?” Jess smiled.

“What? No, Kara’s important because she is like the heart of our family.” Winn smiled back. “She’s the center of our little group of friends.”

“So sweet. I’m glad Lena is part of the group now, she needs it,” Jess nodded. “What’s next?”

“Last program, then we are done.” Winn started typing, as Jess leaned over his shoulder. The smell of her perfume overwhelmed his nostrils and he inhaled, closing his eyes. When they opened he found himself staring at her profile, and he wondered aloud. “Jess, we umm, so like every other Friday, umm, maybe, if you want, I mean you don’t have to say yes.”

Jess looked at Winn confused, “Are you inviting me to game night at Kara’s?”

Winn blushed, “Well yes, you--well you are part of the umm, the family too, aren’t you?”

Jess smiled softly, “Kara said the same thing. I love to come. Thank you, Winn.”

“Would you like to go to--maybe--umm get something for dinner.” Winn paused, then blurted out, “with me, I mean?”

“That would be nice,” Jess responded, blushing a bit herself. “Now shouldn’t we finish this last program?”

"What? Oh, that." Winn smiled, "yes we should."

* * *

Lena finally arrived home after stopping two muggings and a fire. She landed in the second bedroom and whispered “Tempest” to herself. Her armor slowly returned to its bracelets as she entered the living room. Kara was nowhere to be found. “Kara!” Lena yelled. She turned back towards the other bedroom and saw her super curled up under the quilt on their bed, fast asleep. 

Lena moved closer and sat on the edge of the bed, “Hey darling.” She smiled as the adorable blonde uncurled herself from the blankets and stared up at her with her amazing blue eyes.

"Hey, Lee. Sorry I was was so excited when I woke up, and I thought you would be here earlier, and I pulled out the stuff for supper, and I got cold…” Lena’s lips pressed against hers and Kara sighed.

“Go back to sleep, sweetheart.” Lena smiled, “I’ll be right back.” Lena dashed into the bathroom, changing into one of Kara’s t-shirts. Coming back into the room, she hopped into bed beside Kara and felt her super curl up into her arms.

"Alex and Sara will be here around seven, Lee," Kara said, her voice heavy with sleep.

“Harley will wake us up honey,” Lena smiled, “How about I join you for a little while?”

“Cuddle buddies,” Kara smiled. Then she closed her eyes and relaxed into Lena’s arms.

Lena shook with silent laughter as she relaxed against Kara then kissed the back of her head, “Cuddle buddies, darling.”


End file.
